Cara Olson is a Maryland-based artist whose works are both personal experience and faith focused. Utilizing naturalistic and animal depictions to convey deeper/spiritual messaging.

Although she gravitates towards vibrant color and unnatural color palettes within her illustrations, Cara’s work aims to convey a deeper subtle meaning of either emotional vulnerability or is to inspire the viewer to strive to achieve things beyond themselves. Some of her works explore more solemn themes, while other parts of her work are focused on being uplifting. She is inspired by nature and the Impressionist and post-Impressionism era of art, continuing to experiment with color and texture within her own work.

Cara currently lives and works in Maryland, hoping to get into a position within a gallery and or museum space after graduating from McDaniel College (Westminster, MD) with a major in art and minor in management. Her goal is to work within a gallery and/or museum space so that she can bring recognition to other artists and uplift their works and voices, wanting to empower others to strive for their goals and get noticed for their talent.

Featured Exhibitions:

By Their Fruit Exhibition The Petite Jax | Jacksonville, FL | June 3 - July 1, 2026

Senior Art Exhibition: Capstone 2 Exhibition Esther Prangley Rice Gallery | Westminster, MD | April 28 - May 14, 2026

Kathryn E. Wentz Juried Undergraduate Exhibition  Esther Prangley Rice Gallery | Westminster, MD | March 26 - April 10, 2026

Departmental Honors Exhibition: Fragments of Becoming                       Esther Prangley Rice Gallery | Westminster, MD | March 3 – 20, 2026

Kathryn E. Wentz Juried Undergraduate Exhibition  Esther Prangley Rice Gallery | Westminster, MD | April 3 - 11, 202