BETTYE OLSON

is counted among the most 
influential Minnesota artists of the twentieth 
centur . An Abstract Expressionist, she helped 
shape the landscape of Minnesota's art scene as a 
working artist and a teacher.

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Born in 1923, Bettye's long and extraordinary career-she is still painting today-began in Taos, New Mexico, in 1946, where she trained with modern artists who were changing the course of artistic expression. Bettye was in a unique position to be influenced by art movements as they were occurring. 
 

Returning home to Minneapolis, she continued 
her studies at the University of Minnesota, where 
she accepted a faculty position. Influenced by such 
storied artists as Josephine Lutz Rollins, Eleanor 
and Walter Quirt, Clement Haupers, and Cameron 
Booth, she developed a style that has been com- 
pared to both Van Gogh and Emily Carr. 
 

A wife and mother in the 1950s, she continued 
her work in an era that encouraged conformity; 
the idea of a pursuit outside of the home was 
nearly anathema. Bettye simply took her family 
with her! The title of her book, PERSISTENCE 
OF VISION, speaks to her unwavering commit- 
ment to her art, surmounting roadblocks that 
would have stymied the faint-of-heart. Bettye 
Olson's works now reside in private collections, 
museums, and galleries around the world.