PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST AS A YOUNG N.Y. GIRL.Byline: SUSAN ABRAM Staff Writer ENCINO -- Marla Olmstead's work covers large canvases with layers of generous swirls and dabs of blues, oranges, reds and yellows. Her paintings hang in art galleries and private homes around the country. Her modern, abstract art, which can fetch up to $15,000, has been compared to Jackson Pollock and Wassily Kandinsky Noun 1. Wassily Kandinsky - Russian painter who was a pioneer of abstract art (1866-1944) Kandinski, Kandinsky, Wassily Kandinski : The itchy itch·y adj. Having or causing an itching sensation. redness of a mosquito bite, fragile sand castles crumbling under the sun, fireworks fireworks: see pyrotechnics. fireworks Explosives or combustibles used for display. Of ancient Chinese origin, fireworks evidently developed out of military rockets and explosive missiles and accompanied the spread of military explosives westward to detonating det·o·nate intr. & tr.v. det·o·nat·ed, det·o·nat·ing, det·o·nates To explode or cause to explode. [Latin d in a summer sky, clumps clump n. 1. A clustered mass; a lump: clumps of soil. 2. A thick grouping, as of trees or bushes. 3. A heavy dull sound; a thud. v. of sugary sug·ar·y adj. sug·ar·i·er, sug·ar·i·est 1. Characterized by or containing sugar: sugary foods. 2. Tasting or looking like sugar. 3. candies and lollipops. But for Marla, a 6-year-old who just graduated from kindergarten this week in her hometown of Binghamton, N.Y., success is a word she hasn't yet learned to spell. For now, tonight's West Coast premiere of her artwork means she gets to fly on an airplane, and maybe, see a little of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. . ``Marla is meant to paint,'' said Marte Simpson, who co-owns the stuART gallery on Ventura Boulevard Ventura Boulevard is one of the primary east-west thouroughfares in the San Fernando Valley; as it was originally a part of the El Camino Real (the trail between Spanish missions), Ventura Boulevard is the oldest route in the San Fernando Valley. It was also U.S. in Encino, where two dozen of the child-artist's paintings will be on display and for sale beginning today. The show will run until Aug. 20. ``As an artist myself, I'm blown away by her boldness,'' Simpson said as she looked over one of the giant canvases titled ``Glitter.'' ``Most adults struggle with abstract, with a child's sense of wonder.'' By now, the story of how Marla's vision drew the attention of the art world is history, even though it only happened four years ago. She began painting alongside her father, Mark Olmstead, who works for Frito-Lay, at the age of 2. He has said giving her paint and a brush was a way to keep her busy as he tried to get back into art after a long hiatus. The Olmsteads gave some of the canvases Marla painted to a friend, who then hung them on the walls of the coffeehouse he owns in town. Soon, customers wanted to buy them. Marla's first piece sold for $250. She has completed some 200 paintings since, slowing down only for kindergarten classes, her family has said. In time, some of those paintings made their way to the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. , when Stuart Simpson bought three for his private collection. Already collectors of Monet and Renoir, the Simpsons were inspired by Marla's paintings to open their own gallery on Ventura Boulevard more than a year ago. Tonight's reception kicks off their first major show. While Marla's paintings have raised questions of authenticity, Marte Simpson said she believes in the girl, who uses brushes and spatulas and even the tips of the tubes of her acrylic paints to produce the works. ``We've seen her at work,'' Simpson said. ``We've seen her work in progress. It takes so much to put on a show. You don't do it with someone unless you believe in them.'' As for Marla's parents, they have said that if their daughter ever wants to stop painting, they will support her. ``For me, I feel the same adulation ad·u·la·tion n. Excessive flattery or admiration. [Middle English adulacioun, from Old French, from Latin ad and love,'' Marla's mother, Laura, said this week in a telephone interview from New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . ``Marla learned to read this year, and I'm most thrilled about that.'' A quiet child, Marla seems to feel best when she is expressing herself through art, her mom said. But because she is so young, the family is aware it could all change. ``There have been times when we thought she's grown out of it, but then she returns,'' Olmstead said. ``Things are changing. She's gotten more interested in drawing. She's really incorporating the things that she learns in school.'' The Olmsteads, who also have 4-year-old son, Zane, said Marla's sudden fame has been challenging, but only for the parents. ``The hard part for me was when all the craziness was going on and it was kind of like I had no one to turn to and say, `I'm scared,''' Olmstead said. ``It was a very lonely time for my husband and I. ``But Marla was blissfully oblivious and people have been good to her and good to us.'' susan.abram(at)dailynews.com (818) 713-3664 CAPTION(S): 2 photos, box Photo: (1 -- color) The modern, abstract paintings of New Yorker Marla Olmstead Marla Olmstead (born 2000 in Binghamton, New York) is an artist, considered by some to be a child prodigy of abstract art. According to her family, Olmstead began painting before her second birthday. By 2004 she had attracted international media attention. , 6, have been compared to the works of Jackson Pollock. (2) Artist Marla Olmstead's ``Building'' hangs in the StuART Gallery in Encino. The gallery is holding an opening for the 6-year-old artist tonight. The show will run through Aug. 20. Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer Box: IF YOU GO |
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