a rare glimpse of early odin j. oyen's drawings before establishing his decorating firm in la crosse, wisc.

as i continue to systematically document an overwhelming amount of drawings, photographs, artifacts and correspondences revolving around notable artisan odin j. oyen, i felt it was important to share multiple drawings i've gathered thus far that not only shed new light on oyen's work during his time in chicago at the art institute, but also document the evolution of oyen's stylistic experimentation shortly before opening his interior decorating firm in la crosse, wisc, where he would remain until his death in 1926.

it is abundantly clear that the designs reflecting the widely popular american aesthetic movement of the mid-1880's greatly influenced the subject matter he chose to execute with graphite pencil or vibrant watercolor renderings. a few of the drawings include his name within the design as if he was experimenting with how exactly he wanted to identify his business, perhaps in the form of signage.

amazingly, the drawings were tucked away intact in the original "holden's school portfolio" patented in 1877. odin j. oyen's name is prominently displayed in pencil on the heavy cardstock folder's cover. several drawings in various formats and/or mediums were cataloged, but for this post, only a sampling is provided. the entire body of work (e.g., drawings, etc.) executed before oyen established his firm, will be available next year in an upcoming catalog.