I work primarily with large-scale portrait drawing, using pencil, charcoal, and colored pencil on paper. My process is slow and meticulous, driven by a need to get close — not just to the physical features of a face, but to something deeper. I am interested in what it means to be human, and how we carry our stories in the way we look at the world — and at each other.

I carry my own story, a life lived between two worlds — and I let that inform my work. Through the people I draw, I explore themes of identity, belonging, and the quiet tension between recognition and otherness. I want to create spaces where we can see ourselves, but also sense what it feels like not to fully fit in.

My portraits do not seek to explain, but to hold presence. To slow down the gaze. For me, it’s all about seeing — and being seen.

Claudia Olsen (b. 1987, Guatemala) is a visual artist based in Stavanger, Norway. She was adopted from Guatemala at the age of seven and grew up in Bryne, on the west coast of Norway. Her experience of navigating multiple cultures informs her artistic exploration of identity, belonging, and human complexity. Claudia holds a Master’s degree in Fine Art from KMD-UiB completed in 2024.