Olana Light

Olana Light is a multidisciplinary artist based in Portsmouth, Hampshire, UK. She has an MA from Goldsmiths (2020) and a BA from Southampton Solent University (2017).

Recent awards include the Every Breath We Take Award in Open Category (2024); Arts Council England DYCP (2024), CAS Emerging Sculptors Award (2023), Southampton City Gallery Billboard Commission (2023); Arts Council England National Lottery Project Grant (2022 and 2021); Blue Sky Ideas Art&Heritage Award (2022); StreetLife&Aesthetica Changing Rooms Commission Prize (2022);  SpudOPEN Judge’s and Public Choice Award (2022); The Spring Open Competition Award (2022); the Little Forest Open Competition (2022); ‘a space’ arts Lucky Dip Bursary (2021); Zealous Stories Sculpture (2021); Sunny Art Prize Award (2020); and the Goldsmiths International Response Scholarship Award (2017). She was also shortlisted for the 6th John Ruskin Prize (2024); Quay Arts Open: The Art of Sculpture (2023); CAS Open_Open (2023); The Next Thing Award (2022); 8th International Marianne Brandt Award (2022); NAE Open (2022); the Zealous Stories: Short Film (2022); The Next Thing Award (2021); Zealous Stories Performance (2020); Batsford Prize Award (2019 and 2017); Harvest Short Film Competition (2019); Visual Art Open Prize (2018); Nasty Women International Art Prize (2018), and the Platform Graduate Award (nominated by Aspex Gallery, 2017).

She has exhibited her work nationally and internationally. Recent solo exhibitions include Let It Breathe, Hidden Wardrobe, 'a space' arts, Southampton; out I side I in, The Smallest Gallery, Soho; We Are Not Ourselves, The Stone Space, and Jeannie Avent Gallery, London.

Olana has completed residencies at La Vista in Tenerife (2023), EcoSuites in Greece (2022); School of Design and Fashion in Southampton (2019); Aspex Gallery in Portsmouth (2017 and 2018); Sticks Gallery in Fareham (2017).

Recent publications include Ludvig Rage, Inside Artist, and Trebuchet.

Download this page as a PDF here