Olof Olsson

🎤 ON TOUR! 🚆 If you would like to reserve for these shows, please put in a comment! 🖍 📌 15.5 Leipzig @backstein_west 📌 22.5 Berlin @eeclectic_publishing 📌 3.6 Copenhagen @lygtenstation ❤️ Warmly welcome! 🎤 “When I apply to art school, I’m so sure to fail – that I’m not even nervous. So the jury gets confused – and I get in.“ 🎤 DRIVING THE DOUBTS AWAY An info comedy by Olof Olsson 💥 AN INFO COMEDY is 40% information, 30% comedy, 20% autobiography, and 10% melodrama. 💥 THE INFO COMEDY Driving the Doubts Away is about how jokes work, why people hate performance art, and about the real difference between high culture and low culture.  💥 AND IT’S ABOUT THE DREAM of being an artist. And how to survive – when doubt is killing you. And about the enigmatic ‘Fountain’, a urinal that’s been voted the most influential art work of the 20th century.  💥 WHEN OLOF APPLIES to art school, he’s so sure to fail – that he’s not even nervous. So the jury gets confused – and he gets in. But he’s still in doubt if he’s got what it takes – to be an artist. 💥 EVENTUALLY, AT A COMEDY OPEN MIC NIGHT, at a McDonald’s, called ‘Mac and Jokes’ – Olof finds a way to drive his doubts away. 💥 IF YOU EVER WANTED to create something, but had an inner voice that said “no” – this is the show for you. ❤️

🥁 LEIPZIG! Here I come! This Friday 15 May, 20:00. Backstein West, Gießerstraße 4. 🎤 “When I apply to art school, I’m so sure to fail – that I’m not even nervous. So the jury gets confused – and I get in.“ 🎤 DRIVING THE DOUBTS AWAY An info comedy by Olof Olsson AN INFO COMEDY is 40% information, 30% comedy, 20% autobiography, and 10% melodrama. THE INFO COMEDY Driving the Doubts Away is about how jokes work, why people hate performance art, and about the REAL difference between high culture and low culture. AND IT’S ABOUT THE DREAM of being an artist. And how to survive – when doubt is killing you. And about the enigmatic ‘Fountain’, a urinal that’s been voted the most influential art work of the 20th century. WHEN OLOF APPLIES to art school, he’s so sure to fail – that he’s not even nervous. So the jury gets confused – and he gets in. But he’s still in doubt if he’s got what it takes – to be an artist. EVENTUALLY, AT A COMEDY OPEN MIC NIGHT, at a McDonald’s, called ‘Mac and Jokes’ – Olof finds a way to drive his doubts away. IF YOU EVER WANTED to create something, but had an inner voice that said “no” – this is the show for you. Warmly welcome! 🔥 It’s always a marvellous pleasure to perform in Leipzig, and I very much look forward to this. ❤️ Many thanks to: @nici__palm__music , @l_l_lutz , and Pascal at @backstein_west for making this possible.

🎤 COPENHAGEN–ALTONA–HAMBURG–INNSBRUCK–VENICE. There’ve been COMPLAINTS after my Venice fashion post – that it was frivolous, and that there were no trains. And SUSPICIONS that I might have gone to Venice by plane. 🚆But I did take the train – the 10:22 from Copenhagen, since the Deutsche Bahn website (an essential tool) said that the 12:22 (with a healthy 150-minute margin for my Hamburg change) would be fully packed. But the 8:22 got cancelled, so the 10:22 became ultra-fully packed, and I was lucky to get a seat. As we left, the 8:22 was still standing still on the adjacent track. 🐝 I sat beside a lady from Wolfsburg, a former architect, who now works as a coach for small businesses and sells a health food product that’s changed her life. I forgot to ask what the product did; I should have. 🍍 For (to me) unknown reasons, the train only took us Hamburg Altona, where I found a bench in the sun far out on the platform, in a sort of universe of its own – and had a picnic. At home, I’d just started on a pineapple. So, I brought the remaining 80% along. But after my lunch, I couldn’t finish the pineapple – and had to give the last 15% to the Altona seagulls. 🍄 As I sat there, suddenly the 8:22 from Copenhagen pulled in; so the 8:22 it had driven right behind us! Completely empty!! 🍧 In the centre of Altona, I found a very nice 1950s Italian ice-cream parlour, where I had a Coppa Amarena (one can always eat ice-cream) and a splendid double espresso. 🐑 At Hamburg Hbf, the 19:19 night train to Innsbruck was delayed by almost two hours. But then I got a whole couchette compartment to myself, and in the morning we arrived right on time. It was sunny, and the Alps made me cry. 🏔 The 9:24 departure to Venice was 40 minutes late, but then in Venice – we arrived right on time, at 15:07 🎡 In Venice, the Austrian pavilion, by floholzinger, made a deep impression. ⛺ So did the Spanish, by @oriolvilanova . 50000 postcards bought in flee markets, in some sort of order. 🌍 All that visual and cultural information became overwhelming and sublime, but in a friendly way. And after the initial shock, I just wanted to keep on looking. 💥

🎤 HOW TO DRESS IN VENICE. If you go to the opening of the Venice Biennale, you’ll have to ask yourself: ‘what do I wear?’ 🧩 For such a seminal event, shouldn’t you dress to impress? But actually, most visitors go for a practical and casual look. Then of course, there are people like @mariakjaerthemsen and @sinzianaravini , who wouldn’t’ be @mariakjaerthemsen and @sinzianaravini – in a practical and casual look. ❤️ In a Scandinavian context, no one does the practical and casual look better than @liseharlev . She’s the queen of vintage shopping, and curates her finds into a crisp mid-size college 1950s look. Her Paris Review tote bag (bought new) and cool sunglasses (vintage?) perfected her look. 🦴 Unlike @liseharlev , surprisingly few people used the tote bag to make a style statement. Which is so easy and economic – you just need good taste. A lot of visitors simply accepted free handouts from publications like Frieze, Artribune (silly name), and – I’m not joking – The BAG (the Biennale Art Guide). The endless multiplications of these bags around the Giardini, made both their carriers and their hand-outing institutions look cheap. 😎 At the Biennale, a surprising amount of people didn’t wear sunglasses. Which surprised me. Wouldn’t one want to let one’s eyes rest in-between the pavilions? On the other hand – it’s easier to network when people recognize you. 😎 Those who did do sunglasses – did it well. Special mentions go to @superflexgenger and @lenerenner . 🔥 I saw a man in a most extraordinary suit, with a flashy pattern and several bright colours. The next day, he was in another flashily patterned and coloured suit. He refused to be photographed. But he revealed that he was a gallerist, and that he wore a new suit every day. ❤️ One of my Venice fashion favourites was @roma__remont from Kazakhstan: in a white linen shirt and a matching white hat; with a wonderful smile – and a lot of grace. To judge from his Instagram account, he’s doing something with building. It’s a great account. He’s got a lot of followers. Tip: to keep your shoes look sharp in the dusty Giardini – bring a little shoe brush.

Wir freuen uns auf eine persönliche Premiere. Eine informelle Komödie mit OLOF OLSSON - wie überleben, wenn Zweifel Dich umbringen. Dann also weg mit den Zweifeln. So ernst war es noch nie. Aber keine Sorge, OLOF geleitet Euch entlang unserer Karte und einem Drink seiner Wahl durch den Abend. Lasst Euch überraschen! Reservierungen können über die Webseite gemacht werden. Kulturbeitrag 10-15€ @info_comedy @gilbertspaceschneider

🎤 BERLIN! Here I come! I haven’t performed in Berlin for seven years. But now it happens. 🖌 Please put in a comment if you would like to reserve. 🚀 Warmly welcome! ❤️ Many thanks to @eeclectic_publishing for hosting. And for the beautiful flyer. Looking very much forward to this. Friday 22 May 20:00 EECLECTIC Lindenstraße 91 10969 Berlin

🎤 Here’s the application I wrote this year to the Danish Arts Foundation. 🖌 A heartfelt thanks for the support. 🌹 I’m very moved to be able to go on doing what I love to do. 🌻 @statenskunstfond 🚀

🎤 TO PERFORM IN STUBBEKØBING Friday was simply wonderful. On a day of a performance, TIME is the greatest luxury. More time means less stress, more focus, and a greater chance to enjoy the rituals of preparation. 🧩 ⏳ So, to get as much time as possible, I asked if it was possible be in Stubbekøbing a day ahead. And it was! 🔥 So, @oliver_stilling picked me up – with all my stuff – Thursday afternoon, at the stroke of two. It was Oliver who had asked me to do the show, he’s a journalist and editor and an ardent Stubbekøbing ambassador. And, as it turned out – the perfect impresario. Stubbekøbing is beautifully enigmatic, a medieval town on the island of Falster, two hours south of Copenhagen. (Denmark only gets big in Jutland). 🍽 I started my Stubbekøbing evening, with a panaeng curry at the Thai restaurant. And then I took a walk to explore Stubbekøbing. 🧶 Stubbekøbing has 2 200 inhabitants, so it didn’t take that long to cover the town. ⚽ At the football arena, there was an interesting spherical sculpture. It obviously represented a ball. But without the ball morphology – it was just a sphere, like Goethe’s ‘Good Luck Sculpture’ – but without the pedestal. 🔍 The silo, down by the harbour, you can see from all over town. On my picture of the silo, to the right – there’s a low building that looks like a typical Danish 1960s/70s library. And it used to be, but now it’s a motorcycle museum. 🖍 So, for the show, I wrote a joke suggesting that the books had been shipped with the ferry to Bogø, the closest neighbouring island. In Danish “Bogø” means ‘book island. And the joke went down well! 😊 During my walk I discovered that there was another event in Stubbekøbing going exactly the same time, as my performance – a Danish schlager sing-along at the “Amateur Stage the Dandelion.” Even the entrance fee was the same (if you were a member). However, in spite of the competition, 22 people came to the show (plus a few from Copenhagen). 22 people in a town with 2200 – that’s 1%. Which means that when I perform in Berlin on the 22nd of May, I can hope for an audience of 37 000! ❤️ Thank you, Oliver! And thank you Stubbekøbing! I had marvellous evening. ❤️

🎤 STUBBEKØBING! Nu på fredag kl 19: Driving the Doubts Away. For at reservere: sæt ind en kommentar! 🖍 📌 Det hele foregår i det smukke Gamle Rådhus. Varmt velkommen! 🏠 Driving the Doubts Away – an info comedy by Olof Olsson. How to survive – when doubt is killing you. “WHEN I APPLY TO ART SCHOOL, I’m so in doubt, and so confused – that I confuse the jury. And I get in, and get more confused – and more in doubt.“ AT THE HEART OF THE DOUBT AND CONFUSION stands Fountain, a urinal turned sculpture in 1917 – which in 2004 was voted the most influential art work of the 20th century. AS THE DOUBT AND CONFUSION UNTANGLES, we get to know how jokes work, the real difference between high culture and low culture, why people hate performance art, and how – with the help of humour – you can learn to trust your ideas. IN ADDITION, there are insights on Mars bars, billionaires, dry cleaning, sparkling water, free coffee, and much more – and it’s all charged with sublime jokes. AN INFO COMEDY is 40% information, 30% comedy, 20% autobiography, and 10% melodrama. IF YOU EVER WANTED to create something, but had an inner voice that said “no” – this is the show for you.

🎤 Victor, who was on the first row last Friday, is not only an artist and a poet, but also an engineer. It’s always a great joy to have him in the audience. And it’s practical, because when Victor laughs — everyone laughs! 🎪 Warm thanks to everyone who came, and to @liveart.dk for hosting. 📌 Upcoming performances: Stubbekøbing 24 April, Berlin 14 May, Copenhagen 3 June. 📌 Driving the Doubts Away — an info comedy.

🎤 I’ve got the best job in the world. This photograph is taken at 2.30 in the morning, after my Friday performance of Driving the Doubts Away at @liveart.dk . I had by then been awake for 22 hours. ⏱ ⏰ I didn’t really have any reason to get up at 4.30 the morning before, since most of the preparations were already done. But I was like a child at Christmas, very excited — and it was impossible to continue to sleep. So, I took the early morning as an opportunity to rehearse my script one more time. 💫 🔍 Performing is precision work, and with lack of sleep there’s a much bigger risk of forgetting my lines. But luckily, on Friday things worked out well. I only changed the order of a couple of sentences, and missed a word or two. 🔎 🎸 However, when it was time to play the final song, I was completely exhausted. My brain-body-coordinator would only let me play the guitar with great difficulty, although it’s a song with super-easy chords. 🎼 📌 Note to self: I should have taken an afternoon nap. 📌 🔥 But in spite of that last guitar glitchiness, it was an absolutely wonderful night. The audience was fantastic. And as I was walking home, along the Copenhagen lakes, I was thinking: I’ve got the best job in the world. 🔥 ❤️ Thank you to everyone who came, and to @liveart.dk for hosting. ❤️

🎤 COPENHAGEN TONIGHT FRIDAY 20:00 at @liveart.dk . Show and two gin&tonics for 100 kroner. Put in a comment if you would like to reserve. ⭐ 🔍 Driving the Doubts Away – an info comedy. Warmly welcome! ❤️ 🧷 (And yes, I still believe in that joke!) 🧷