Olley on Aesops Fables

Created in 2003, Bob Olley abandoned his limited palette of oil colours for the bright and vibrant medium of ‘gauche’ and shows a complete change of direction and subject.  In a style and medium he had never used before, he has transformed the presentation of Aesops famous fables from verbal to visual form and has created this beautiful series of paintings, with over 60 in the collection which will be gradually introduced to our website.

The ‘fable’ is a mixture of tale and parable, a short story that conveys a hidden meaning, be it moral, social or political.  The true fable aims to show human actions and weakness, and ways in which we can improve our attitude towards others.  Many disguises are used – fictitious characters, clothing, birds, animals and trees that speak. The telling of the stories in this way leads to the listener learning a lesson without being aware that he is being taught.

These stories have gone unchanged for over 2000 years, but all of the messages they contain remain true to life today.

Aesop used birds and animals to represent humans in his stories.  Perhaps the ‘stranger’ we all warn our children about is ‘The Wolf in Sheeps Clothing’.  Could ‘The Goose that laid the Golden Egg’ be interpreted as the way mankind has greedily abused the planet in his search for wealth, causing the ecological problems we are now beginning to recognise.

Olley on Aesop is definitely Bobs most thought provoking series yet, so be prepared to look at these old lessons in a new way.  And remember, most importantly, we should all take ‘The Swallows Advice’.

All Aesop’s Fables prints are available for purchase in the store