Olivia Twist was born to St Lucian parents in London, England and grew up in Tower Hamlets. Studying at the Royal College of Art, her vibrant illustrations, reminiscent of lino and woodblock prints, are inspired by her family history and her local Afro-Caribbean community. Her work, which is now gaining critical acclaim, also confronts significant societal issues in the UK, such as the right to protest and the housing crisis.
Illustrator, arts facilitator and lecturer, Olivia Twist was born to St Lucian parents in London, growing up in Tower Hamlets, East London. Her family arrived in the UK as part of the Windrush generation, a historical context that continues to shape her artistic endeavours. She earned her BA from the London College of Communication in 2015 and her MA in Visual Communication from the Royal College of Art in 2017. Her vibrant and loosely-drawn illustrations take inspiration from lino and woodblock prints. As Twist has stated, ‘I have always been into woodcut prints, felt tip bleed and muscle fibre – so my style is a bit of a mishmash of all of that’ (Williams 2021). Twist is also inspired by historical photos showcasing the Caribbean community and East London during the 1970s and 1980s. Exploring the connections between generations, her work also celebrates her local community. Highlighting daily routines and familiar slices of everyday life, she captures casual encounters, from elders at the laundrette to youngsters in internet cafes and children laughing joyfully at the back of the bus. Her work mirrors her natural tendency to observe the world around her, rooted in the belief that each individual carries a unique, complex narrative. As Anoushka Khandwala has noted, Twist ‘grapples with threads of place, intimacy and kinship within her practice, featuring personal but apparently mundane moments that have a transformative effect on those involved’ (Khandwala 2021). This approach is exemplified in the illustration Baking for Mum, created shortly before the Covid lockdown. Using a lively mustard yellow palette, the work portrays her brother in sportswear, baking a Mother's Day cake. It reflects a time of uncertainty, when people gravitated towards the comfort of simple pleasures, such as baking bread and whipping up desserts. Her piece, Go for it, conveys the remarkable ability of food to unite individuals. To Twist, home resonates as a space of generous food sharing and abundance, where the act of cooking for someone and sharing meals signifies profound connections. She has stated, ‘it’s these small things that really make us feel grounded. Cooking for us is a gesture of love and eating together as a house is a bonding experience we don't take for granted’ (Habito).
Her illustrations also confront significant UK societal issues, such as protest, demonstrations, and the housing crisis, as depicted in The Party Don’t Stop. This artwork emerged from her experience with a negligent landlord who burdened Twist and her housemates with discarded furniture for the duration of their lease. Despite their initial discomfort, they eventually grew accustomed to a bed frame occupying their living space. Through this illustration, Twist commented on the complexities of the London rental market, emphasising both the joys and trials of shared living.
In creating her illustrations, Twist employs reclaimed materials, such as coloured card, and draws with black marker pens, valued for their lasting impact and starkness. She likes the way the pen's ink seeps into the surface and uses its ink, as it dries up, for shading purposes. Twist's colour choices are typically subdued, often determined only at the conclusion of each sketch. For her, colour is important as it accentuates the atmosphere of her work and brings vibrancy to the image. However, as she aims for primary emphasis to be on the intricate drawn lines, she employs colour minimally, selecting hues which are reminiscent of the everyday, such as the flooring of the lift in her family's building or the shade of a rice dish her father prepares.
In 2020, Twist's work was showcased in London as part of a street exhibition featuring work from 12 visual artists, predominantly of Afro-Caribbean heritage. The show, Undivided Divinity, organised by Molasses Gallery and curated by Tanaka Saburi, included pieces from photographers, Ronan McKenzie and Sharmaarke Ali Adan, among others, as well as by illustrator Joy Yamusangie. In 2022, Twist collaborated with Habito for the 'This Is Our Home' initiative – a year-long partnership that asked artists to reimagine typical estate agents' signage. Artists populated these signs with personal tales and cherished recollections of home, transforming them into symbols of jubilant dissent.
Twist is a lecturer on the BA Graphic Design course at UCA Epsom. She is part of Sxwks, a London-based collective of artists which includes poets, photographers, musicians, graphic designers, and illustrators. Twist has contributed murals at the Battersea youth hub, Carneys Community, in southwest London, the result of a residency and a series of workshops. In the UK public domain her work can be found in the collection of the Museum of London.
Consult items in the Ben Uri archive related to [Olivia Twist]
Publications related to [Olivia Twist] in the Ben Uri Library