Mother Stories
At Home With Artist, Author, & PJ Maker Alessandra Olanow
Written by Katie Hintz-Zambrano
Photography by Yumi Matsuo
Sep 1, 2021
We go way back with today’s mama, Brooklyn-based artist Alessandra Olanow. In fact, her playful illustrations embellished some of our very first articles and we’ve been excited to see her soar as the years have marched on. Her Instagram feed is now a cult-followed destination, thanks to its honest explorations of life’s ups and downs through art. She published a book in 2020 (and has another on the way). And she and business partner Fiona Montgomery launched a children’s pajama brand—the whimsically designed, and named, Dodo Banana. She’s also dug her heels more thoroughly into motherhood, endured the loss of her own mother, and gone through a divorce, all topics which she continues to explore in her work. Below, the inspiring creative invites us into the space she shares with her daughter Coco (almost 7), and tells us about another big project on the horizon.
-
- "I live in Boerum Hill. It’s one of my favorite neighborhoods in Brooklyn. I moved here when I was pregnant, so it’s been more than 7 years now! I took over the lease from a friend that moved to Austin, and it’s one of those classic brownstones with all of the little charms from wide plank floors to crooked ceilings. I love the imperfection, it echoes my life—ha!"
-
-
Alessandra wears a Frank & Eileen button-down and Mother denim shorts. Coco wears a Jacadi dress.
"I love this button-down, it was my mom's. The shorts were actually once pants that I cut off last summer," says Alessandra. "Meanwhile, Coco is super girly, which makes me laugh because I never was."
-
- "I like a very neutral/muted palette. I let color come from the artwork that hangs on the walls, and from the people who visit my home."
-
- "Simple and functional. I work from home (as I guess many do these days), so I like a space that’s open and bright, but also comfortable. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve adopted a 'less is more' attitude. If something comes in, something needs to go out."
-
- "I’m always at my desk. I’m constantly drawing, or writing, or doing something there. I’ve placed my chair right by the window, which I think of as an ever changing painting. Whether it’s the leaves on the trees turning, neighbors walking along the sidewalk, or even a cyclist screaming at a car to get out of the bike lane, I am forever inspired by life passing on my street."
-
- "My daughter is my shadow these days, so wherever I am, she’s there. I love it. I know it won’t last, so I soak it in."
-
- Some of Alessandra's go-to cookbooks line the shelf: How to Cook Everything Vegetarian: Simple Meatless Recipes for Great Food by Mark Bittman, Breakfast Lunch Tea: Rose Bakery by Rose Carrarini, and Ottolenghi Simple: A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi.
-
- "I don’t think so. I worked from home before COVID, and although the amount of time spent indoors during the pandemic was unbelievable, I’ve always had an appreciation for my personal space. It’s where I recharge."
-
- "My daughter is at an age now where she can grasp concepts more, so I’m able to really be myself with her. Where as before there was a lot of YES And NO, now there are more conversations. I’m excited most by just being ourselves together."
-
- "The usual—the state of the world, social politics, the environment. I want my daughter to live in a harmonious, peaceful world, but I know that’s virtually impossible. I hope I can at least pass along good values and open-mindedness so she can be a positive contributor."
-
-
Alessandra wears an Elizabeth & James top and Levi's jeans. Coco wears Dodo Banana PJs.
"My safe place is a henley. And I'm almost never not in jeans," she says.
-
- A close-up of Coco's Dodo Banana pajamas in the new Desert print, which includes Alessandra's illustrations of tiny cacti, coyotes, and more.
-
- "Yes. I was ok with not being a mother if life didn’t play out that way for me, but the urge was always there."
-
- "She’s almost 7 and obsessed with books. She’ll wake up and read in her room for a good hour. She loves chapter books, pretty much anything with a cat, a unicorn, or a pony is a fave."
-
- "I was one of four kids, the only girl. My mom had us all by the age of 27 and we were always fighting for her and my dad’s attention. My household was multi-generational and bilingual (English and Spanish). My mom’s mom (Mama) lived with us after moving from the Dominican Republic. I spent my grade school years in North Carolina where we were always outdoors. My mom would throw us out of the house and tell us to be home by dinner. It was great. My parents were very heavily focused on education, which created something of a competitive nature between the kids. That part was hard because academics didn’t come as naturally to me as they did for my brothers. I wanted to draw, and sing, and dance and didn’t have a voice to tell me that those interests mattered too."
-
-
"Maintaining Latin culture is important to me. Coco goes to a Spanish immersion school and probably speaks better Spanish than me at this stage."
"In terms of what I’m not incorporating, of course I want a great education for my daughter, but I don’t want her to feel that academics defines her. I want to expose her to as much as I can and see where she leans and gets excited."
-
- "Yes. I always had a box of crayons nearby. We moved around a lot and drawing was my constant. Coco definitely inherited my drawing appetite, she’s always sketching up something."
-
- "I did find out the sex as soon as I could. I always thought I wanted to have a boy. My mother and I, although extremely close, had an intense relationship and I thought boys would just be easier. But to my surprise, I love having a girl. There’s an intimacy there, but I’m not sure I would proclaim it has anything to do with gender, I think it’s just the natural bond of having a child."
-
- "Coco was really the only name her dad and I could agree on. And we went through many names. Her middle name is Mila, I wanted it to start with an M in honor of my grandfather Max. The day he died was the same day I found out I was pregnant."
-
- "I’m a pretty good combo of tough and soft, which I know sounds impossible but I think kids need both. Her dad and I have always had strict rules around bedtimes, technology, manners, etc., but I also know when to relax and just let her off the hook."
-
- "I’m a creative. For the most part, I draw, so it’s often easiest to say I’m an illustrator. But over the past year, I published my first book, I USED TO HAVE A PLAN: but life had other ideas, and I’ve just begun on my second. I also have a children’s pajama line called Dodo Banana that I am very proud of. Last but not least, I’ve been working tirelessly on a new body oil called A.OK, which I’ll be releasing beginning of 2022. More on that later…"
-
- Art, plants, and more favorite cookbooks, including The Kitchen Diaries by Nigel Slater, Super Natural Simple: Whole-Food, Vegetarian Recipes for Real Life by Heidi Swanson, The New Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison, Simple Cake: All You Need to Keep Your Friends and Family in Cake by Odette Williams, Gjelina: Cooking from Venice, California by Travis Lett, Jerusalem: A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi, Plenty More by Yotam Ottolenghi, and Jack's Wife Freda: Cooking From New York's West Village by Maya and Dean Jankelowitz.
-
-
"I studied fine art at Washington University in St.Louis, but stumbled into a design job when I graduated. I lived in Toronto for about 5 years and then moved to New York. I was in the commercial arts, I worked as an art director and a graphic designer for about a decade."
Pictured: a favorite recipe flipped open from Simply Julia: 110 Easy Recipes for Healthy Comfort Food, by Alessandra's friend, Julia Turshen. Her I've Done Nothing/I've Done Everything mug is by David Shrigley.
-
- "Being self employed, my work days vary, if there’s lots to do, I work all day. But, if I’m not under a tight deadline things can be more flexible, which could include going to the park to read, lunch with a friend, or an afternoon stroll. I don’t like to be chained to my desk, so I break up the day if I can."
-
- "My inspiration comes in many forms; really anything that allows me to think creatively. Some of that results from reading books, listening to music, going to art shows. But mostly I’m just looking around, watching people on the street, noticing how a stranger tells a story or eats a sandwich, wondering how they picked out what they have on and why. Everyday moments and the movements of human behavior give me so much. Whenever I get stuck on an idea, I go for a walk and take a peek at the world around me."
-
- "Motherhood has shifted everything in my life. Having my daughter, Coco, was the greatest relief. Suddenly after decades of only needing to take care of myself, someone else came first. She is my little anchor that keeps me grounded. I’ve found that I’ve slowed down so much, accepting that you can’t always rush everything. This attitude has rippled into my artwork in the best way. Having more patience with myself and allowing myself the time I need to explore."
-
- Some of Alessandra's work, close-up.
-
-
Alessandra wears a vintage silk top and Reformation jeans.
"I love silk, so comfortable," she says. "And once again, jeans."
-
- "LDBA handmade watercolor paint sets are my absolute favorite watercolors. They have a really beautiful selection of colors. Arches hot-pressed watercolor paper—I like hot-pressed because I like the way the artwork translates when scanned in. Escoda watercolor brushes—I like the round pointed brushes. Papermate mechanical pencils. These are pretty basic but I just love them. Delfonics wooden ballpoint pen 0.7mm. Midori MD notebooks. And Sharpies, of course!"
-
- "I find I challenge myself more because I want to make her proud. The way you see your parent after they are gone is so different. We evolve and our work evolves because of it."
-
-
"I was actually approached by my now literary agent Kate Woodrow. She reached out to me and said, 'I have no idea what’s going on in your life, but you should write (draw) a book.' This happened about eight months into my separation from my daughter’s dad. I had never really thought about telling a story through pictures, but I began to notice that my drawings (which I was sharing on Instagram as an emotional purge), were deeply resonating with people and building a community. My honesty and openness really seemed to translate, so I thought, 'Why not?'"
"Organizing my thoughts around what was going on in my life proved to be not only cathartic, but very freeing. While I was finishing I USED TO HAVE A PLAN, my mother died. Of course some of that showed up in the final touches of the book. Since her death, my relationship with loss has been so complicated, layered, and disorienting, which is why I’m drawing my second book on grief. It will be available from Harper Collins next year."
-
- "When Coco was a baby, I always struggled to find cute pajamas that were organic and soft. She was spending over 12 hours a day in pajamas at the time and I wanted her to be in something quality, comfortable, and cute. At the time, I was creating an illustration for my friend Fiona to announce the closing of her shop, Thomas Sires, and she said 'What should I do now?' I jokingly answered, 'Maybe we should make pajamas?' A year later we opened Dodo Banana."
-
-
"My daughter doesn’t get screen time unless she’s on a plane or I’m brushing her hair. Her dad and I are very strict about limiting screen time for as long as possible. On the weekends she gets movie nights, but phones and iPads are not part of her everyday life."
"As for myself, I try to stay off my phone as much as possible. We don’t have a TV, just a projector, so I really just watch movies or shows here and there. I guess I don’t have specific rules for myself, but I prefer to listen to music in my free time."
-
- "I like fashion, but function wins. So yes, I have pieces that are special, but mostly I like things that are comfortable and neat. A good pair of jeans, sneakers, and a sweatshirt is my uniform. In terms of motherhood, I can’t say my style has changed. I still dress the same!"
-
-
"I like to keep things very simple when it comes to my beauty routine. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve really ditched most makeup to concentrate more on keeping my skin healthy. This means a gentle wash and occasional exfoliator, a nice Vitamin C serum, and a hydrating oil or cream for my face."
"Some of my favorites are Kat Burki Calming Gel Cleanser. Daily Dose Vitamin C + Multivitamin Defense Serum by Epi.Logic. Caudalie Vinoperfect Radiance Serum Complexion Correction. Elemis face creams. And Elta MD sunscreen."
-
- "The last year presented moments of isolation that were difficult for me. As an artist, I get my inspiration from walking around my neighborhood, seeing friends, witnessing my community, etc. With more time inside and alone, I became very interested in grounding practices—rituals that remind us of what’s already there, tucked inside. In particular, aromatherapy and applying nourishing body oils became a very powerful tool to help me slow down and reconnect with myself. In fact, this is the very inspiration for A.OK Oil."
-
- "Finding work/life balance. The lines were so blurry."
-
- "Finding work/life balance. Having to make conscious decisions with my time."
-
- "On co-parenting: It can be really hard to set aside your own anger and hurt, but try not to look at your ex as your enemy—rather the person that loves your kid as much as you do."
-
- "1. Never be afraid to ask for what you deserve, if you don't ask, the answer is always no. 2. Promote yourself! I am an extroverted introvert, so talking about myself is not in my nature, but if you don’t tell people what you are up to, how will they know?"
-
- Alessandra's bookish bedside scene.
-
- "People need people. From COVID to the political state to racial and gender issues, we need each other and we need to be good to each other—it’s a hard business being human. 2020/2021 has been an incredible reminder for me to take a look at how I’m living and how I want to continue to live and contribute to the world around me."
-
-
For more on Alessandra and her work, be sure to following @aolanow and @dodobanana on Instagram and visit alessandraolanow.com and dodobanana.com.
You can buy her book I USED TO HAVE A PLAN: but life had other ideas here.
Share this story
