

Olivia Parker began her career as a painter, and became involved in photography in 1970. Mostly self-taught, she began working in her studio, constructing images to be photographed. Her first book, Signs of Life, featured simple images seen with keen insight: a perfect white orchid, a pair of ballet slippers, pea pods sitting on a counter. In Eggshells, four cracked white shells rest on a white counter, perfectly lit exposing their vulnerability; in Moon Snails, rows of snails are lined in a box, taking on the appearance of eyes staring out of a cabinet drawer.
Her second book, Under the Looking Glass, featured Parker's color work and interest in photographic collage, creating narratives about ancestry through the combination of old photographs, blooming flowers and aged fruit. While these images were small in nature (4 x 5" and 8 x 10"), Parker infused them with a heightened sense of reality that is exaggerated by color and light. As Mark Strand said in his introduction, "Olivia Parker's photographs contain a remarkable suggestive world of particulars – so suggestive, in fact, that we are not sure if we are looking at strange extensions of reality or colorful projections of dreams." In The Eastern Garden, a tattered doll rests on a wood shelf, a coffin of red roses holding it afloat; in The Black Package, a black package tied with red string which sits at the foot of a portrait of a young girl, suggesting an offering to the dead or a remembrance of a young life.
In Parker's third book, Weighing the Planets, she introduces nautical maps, encyclopedias, glass vials, diaries, metal objects, and flowers to create visual poetry. In these images, Parker creates constructions using natural light which streams onto her set-ups, projecting shadows of figures and objects onto book pages and maps. The effects are eerie; people appear to be floating above the ground, fish swim across the page and wind takes on an animated effect. In At the Edge of the Garden, silhouetted workers appear behind a bed of blooming flowers; in On the Wall, a squatting figure jumps atop a sheet of illegible notepad paper, escaping flying tacks.
In the early 1990s, after almost two decades of working with large format cameras, split-toning and Polaroid materials, Parker turned her attention to the computer, fusing her collage with the new digital era. The resulting images continue to explore real and imagined worlds. In the latest series in the show, Books, Parker photographs an Ethiopian bible, its gazelle skin pages stitched to close natural holes in the hide. Sculptural in presentation, the book takes on other meanings. As Parker states, "A closed book tempts me to open it. As it opens a book may release ideas the same way an open door releases light into a darkened room." Through her works, the viewer is invited into the shadows of Olivia Parker's imagination.
All black & white images are available as vintage splilt-toned gelatin silver contact prints made in various sizes and editions, although most of them were not fully realized. Pieces range in price from $1500 to $8000, depending on size and availability.
All color images are available as 8 x 10" Polaroids or dye transfer prints made in various editions. Pieces range in price from $1500 to $4000, depending on availability.
Please call: (312) 266-2350 for prices of specific pieces.
Prices are print only unless otherwise indicated.
A Book of Broken Rules, 1994
Olivia Parker, A Book of Broken Rules, 1994
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
19½ x 27½” pigment print
Edition of 30A Reasonable Argument, 1980
Olivia Parker, A Reasonable Argument, 1980
From the Under the Looking Glass series
10 x 8" Polaroid print
Edition of 5A Summer Afternoon, 1983
Olivia Parker, A Summer Afternoon, 1983
From the Weighing the Planets series
12 x 20" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 75
Adam and Eve A.D., 1983
Olivia Parker, Adam and Eve A.D., 1983
From the Weighing the Planets series
12 x 20" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
An Unpleasant Surprise, 1985
Olivia Parker, An Unpleasant Surprise, 1985
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Appearances, 1996
Olivia Parker, Appearances, 1996
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
21 x 17½” pigment print
Edition of 30At the Edge of the Garden, 1986
Olivia Parker, At the Edge of the Garden, 1986
From the Weighing the Planets series
14 x 11" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 32Blackbird, 1981
Olivia Parker, Blackbird, 1981
From the Weighing the Planets series
13 x 19" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 75Blackbird Aviary, 1981
Olivia Parker, Blackbird Aviary, 1981
From the Weighing the Planets series
10 x 8" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 100Book, 2002
Olivia Parker, Book, 2002
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
17 x 24" pigment print
Edition of 30Book II, 2002
Olivia Parker, Book II, 2002
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
17 x 24" pigment print
Edition of 30Broken Nautiluses, 1981
Olivia Parker, Broken Nautiluses, 1981
From the Weighing the Planets series
8 x 10" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 50Carousel, 1982
Olivia Parker, Carousel, 1982
From the Weighing the Planets series
13 x 19" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 75Chambers, 1981
Olivia Parker, Chambers, 1981
From the Under the Looking Glass series
10 x 8" Polaroid print
Edition of 2Child, 1980
Olivia Parker, Child, 1980
From the Under the Looking Glass series
8 x 10" Polaroid print
Children With Acorns, 1981
Olivia Parker, Children With Acorns, 1981
From the Under the Looking Glass series
8 x 10" Polaroid print
Edition of 10Cinemechanics, 1984
Olivia Parker, Cinemechanics, 1984
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Circles of Memory, 1980
Olivia Parker, Circles of Memory, 1980
From the Under the Looking Glass series
10 x 8" Polaroid print
Dance, 1977
Olivia Parker, Dance, 1977
From the Signs of Life series
5 x 7" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 50Deer With Pomegranates, 1993
Olivia Parker, Deer With Pomegranates, 1993
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
18½ x 20” pigment print
Edition of 30Devil's Tea Party, 1981
Olivia Parker, Devil's Tea Party, 1981
From the Under the Looking Glass series
10 x 8" Polaroid print
Edition of 8Digitalis, 1980
Olivia Parker, Digitalis, 1980
From the Weighing the Planets series
10 x 8" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 50Displacement, 1983
Olivia Parker, Displacement, 1983
From the Weighing the Planets series
8 x 10" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edges, 1984
Olivia Parker, Edges, 1984
From the Signs of Life series
14 x 11" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 50
Eggshells, 1977
Olivia Parker, Eggshells, 1977
From the Signs of Life series
5 x 7" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
End Game, 1984
Olivia Parker, End Game, 1984
From the Weighing the Planets series
14 x 11" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Feral Tape, 1984
Olivia Parker, Feral Tape, 1984
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium toned silver contact
Four Pears, 1979
Olivia Parker, Four Pears, 1979
From the Under the Looking Glass series
10 x 8" Polaroid print
Edition of 30Freesia, 1983
Olivia Parker, Freesia, 1983
From the Weighing the Planets series
10 x 8" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 17Garlic, 1981
Olivia Parker, Garlic, 1981
From the Under the Looking Glass series
8 x 10" Polaroid print
Edition of 8Gravity, 1982
Olivia Parker, Gravity, 1982
From the Under the Looking Glass series
8 x 10" Polaroid print
Edition of 9Helen's Orchids, 2004
Olivia Parker, Helen's Orchids, 2004
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
17 x 24" pigment print
Edition of 30
Hiatus, 1982
Olivia Parker, Hiatus, 1982
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium toned silver contact
Horseplay, 1993
Olivia Parker, Horseplay, 1993
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
20 x 25" pigment print
Edition of 30In the Works, 1984
Olivia Parker, In the Works, 1984
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 32
Inner Workings, 1983
Olivia Parker, Inner Workings, 1983
From the Weighing the Planets series
10 x 8" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Interior with Amaryllis, 2001
Olivia Parker, Interior with Amaryllis, 2001
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
17 x 24" pigment print
Edition of 30
Interior with Pears, 1979
Olivia Parker, Interior with Pears, 1979
From the Weighing the Planets series
8 x 10" selenium toned silver contact
Edition of 20
Interrupted Information, 1985
Olivia Parker, Interrupted Information, 1985
From the Signs of Life series
11 x 14" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 32La Felicita, 1980
Olivia Parker, La Felicita, 1980
From the Under the Looking Glass series
10 x 8" Polaroid print
Edition of 7Leaving the Scene, 1985
Olivia Parker, Leaving the Scene, 1985
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Lotus in the North I, 2001
Olivia Parker, Lotus in the North I, 2001
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
17 x 24" pigment print
Edition of 30
Miss Appleton's Shoes II, 1976
Olivia Parker, Miss Appleton's Shoes II, 1976
From the Signs of Life series
5 x 4" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Moon Snails, 1977
Olivia Parker, Moon Snails, 1977
From the Signs of Life series
10 x 8" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Ocean, 1984
Olivia Parker, Ocean, 1984
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 32On the Wall, 1983
Olivia Parker, On the Wall, 1983
From the Weighing the Planets series
10 x 8" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 32Orchid, 1977
Olivia Parker, Orchid, 1977
From the Signs of Life series
5 x 4" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Pods of Chance, 1977
Olivia Parker, Pods of Chance, 1977
From the Signs of Life series
7 x 5" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Seven, 1984
Olivia Parker, Seven, 1984
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Shell Beans, 1979
Olivia Parker, Shell Beans, 1979
From the Signs of Life series
8 x 10" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Site I: V Dolls, 1980
Olivia Parker, Site I: V Dolls, 1980
From the Weighing the Planets series
8 x 10" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Site II, Deer, 1981
Olivia Parker, Site II, Deer, 1981
From the Weighing the Planets series
8 x 10" selenium toned silver contact
Statue Seen by a Man, Observed by a Pigeon, 1984
Olivia Parker, Statue Seen by a Man, Observed by a Pigeon, 1984
From the Weighing the Planets series
14 x 11" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 32Still Life Soap Bubble, 1996
Olivia Parker, Still Life Soap Bubble, 1996
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
29 x 20" pigment print
Edition of 30
Telling Structures I, 1998
Olivia Parker, Telling Structures I, 1998
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
27 x 19" pigment print
Edition of 30
The Black Package, 1980
Olivia Parker, The Black Package, 1980
From the Under the Looking Glass series
10 x 8" Polaroid print
Edition of 15The Blue Package, 1980
Olivia Parker, The Blue Package, 1980
From the Under the Looking Glass series
8 x 10" Polaroid print
Edition of 5The Cartographers, 1984
Olivia Parker, The Cartographers, 1984
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
The Eastern Garden, 1980
Olivia Parker, The Eastern Garden, 1980
From the Under the Looking Glass series
10 x 8" Polaroid print
Edition of 9The Edge of Time, 1984
Olivia Parker, The Edge of Time, 1984
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium toned silver contact
Three Peonies, 1984
Olivia Parker, Three Peonies, 1984
From the Signs of Life series
14 x 11" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 50
Training, 1982
Olivia Parker, Training, 1982
From the Weighing the Planets series
12 x 20" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Tulip, 2001
Olivia Parker, Tulip, 2001
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
17 x 24" pigment print
Edition of 30
Turkey Shoot, 1981
Olivia Parker, Turkey Shoot, 1981
From the Under the Looking Glass series
10 x 8" Polaroid print
Edition of 8
Two Peaches, 2001
Olivia Parker, Two Peaches, 2001
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
17 x 24" pigment print
Edition of 30Two Pears, One Leaf, 2001
Olivia Parker, Two Pears, One Leaf, 2001
From the Recent Pigment Prints series
17 x 24" pigment print
Edition of 30Weighing the Planets, 1984
Olivia Parker, Weighing the Planets, 1984
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 32What If..., 1985
Olivia Parker, What If..., 1985
From the Weighing the Planets series
11 x 14" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
World of Wonder, 1986
Olivia Parker, World of Wonder, 1986
From the Weighing the Planets series
14 x 11" selenium split toned gelatin silver contact print
Edition of 32Possibility, 1979
Olivia Parker, Possibility, 1979
From the Under the Looking Glass series
10 x 8" Polaroid print
Edition of 30