Oliya Maicoh

Oliya Maicoh graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a Bachelors in Art. She primarily focuses on printmaking, drawing, and book art. Oliya participated in many shows, some of which are: Piedmont Center of the Arts Juried Art Show (2015), San Francisco Women Artists World of Abstraction (2018), Pacific Art League Abstraction (2018), Paolo Mejia Fine Art and Design Bold, Unpretentious (2018), Chico Art Center Portrait Revolution (2018), Manhattan Graphics Center Print Effect: Small Works/Big Impact (2018). Oliya was given third place for World’s Best Art Brut from the American Art Awards (2018).

“I am an artist-explorer of the mind, its evolution, terrains, and interaction with the material world. My current focus is investigating beliefs—why we are the way we are. I investigate matters such as how we form our beliefs; why, when, how, and who is behind the scenes. I apply any knowledge to understand why we continue wearing blindfolds of beliefs most often made of simple ignorance that mold our minds, and not look into the face of facts, even if blindfolds lead us to self-destruction, conflicts, senseless arguments over mere words, and lock our minds for further ignorance. Why do we keep denying we are limited when it is so obvious we are not? Why do we so easily and often eagerly conform to established patterns? Why are we so scared to become free of authorities of our thoughts and opinions that we encounter everywhere we go, and at all levels we exist? Maybe this is the challenge we—mind-infants—must overcome before finally beginning to develop, really learn the world, and develop serious interrelationships with everything.”