About Judy Olausen

Accolades

“[Olausen is]. . . one of the 10 best photographers in the world.”

— Hasselblad Camera

“The best photographers develop a way to get people to forget they are being photographed.  She has made an art out of that, and it shows in her work.”  

— Kent Kobersteen, Director of Photography, National Geographic

"Judy Olausen’s portraits have a polished, sure-handed look to them… Pensive, ebullient, serious, insightful-these qualities seem as clearly recorded in Olausen’s emulsions as texture and shades of grey."  

— George Slade, pARTs Journal

“Deliriously funny . . . Pass this book around among your friends and watch them have conniptions.” 

— The New York Times Book Review

The Mother Book Captures an Era

Olausen’s first book Mother became a best-selling and internationally influential book.  The overwhelming public response and rave reviews broke a sales record at the New York Times.  The publisher sent Olausen on a forty-one-city book tour––she appeared on the Oprah Winfrey show, Connie Chung, and on “All Things Considered.”  PBS aired a national feature, “Mother as Coffee Table.” The magazines Ms., Life, People, Harper’s, Chicago Tribune, and many more printed featured articles.

An International Reputation for Portraiture

Olausen’s wide range of subjects includes the Prince and Princess of Whales, Andy Warhol, Laurie Anderson, Barbara Cartland, corporate leaders, and average people from farmers to factory workers. She approaches each subject with imagination and wit; Diane Arbus and Cindy Sherman share the same absurd, provocative view. She’s a keen observer who communicates the subtleties of a sitter’s personality through abstract elements of structure and light. 

The American Art World: A Portfolio of Iconic Portraits

With an Arts Fellowship, Olausen created portraits of 200 luminaries in the American Art World. The Directors of the Walker Art Center and the Museum of Modern Art arranged introductions with Artists, critics, collectors and Museum Professionals.