I’m Pollyanna Coleman, professionally known as Olalla - a London-based artist working across illustration, tattooing, poetry, and apparel. My practice blends realism and surrealism, and creating has always been a form of therapy and reflection for me. Influenced by my own personal experiences, as well as visual aspects of ’90s videography, graffiti, hip-hop, East Asian calligraphy, and anime, my work centres on human connection and evokes organic, nostalgic emotion. The name Olalla, meaning good to talk, reflects my commitment to using art as a catalyst for open and honest conversations around mental health.

Illustration forms the foundation of my practice. From an early age, I’ve been drawn to the way faces and bodies hold emotion. Over time, my work has developed into a balance of technical realism and distortion, creating characters and scenes that sit between the familiar and the surreal. My illustrations explore personal and collective narratives and often act as the starting point for work that later appears as tattoos, poems, or apparel.

Tattooing introduced a deeper level of connection to my work. Each tattoo becomes part of someone’s life, shaped through conversation, trust, and shared vulnerability. While living and tattooing in Sydney, this process became central to my practice and gave me a strong sense of purpose and belonging. Much of my tattoo flash originates from my Haiku Series and illustrated characters, allowing clients to choose imagery that resonates with their own experiences.

Poetry has been part of my life since childhood. I began writing poems and songs at a young age and entered poetry competitions through school, though the vulnerability of sharing often kept my work private. In my twenties, I returned to writing without shame, using poetry as a form of journaling and emotional processing. During my time in Australia, I began sharing this work publicly for the first time, pairing poems with illustrations for my Haiku Series.

Haiku became especially important to me during a period of grief, when I was studying Buddhism, Hinduism, and Daoism in search of calm and ways to let go. One poem, in particular, became a daily reference point:

“Simply trust,
do not the petals flutter down,
just like that.” — Kobayashi Issa

This teaching shaped how I approach both life and art, reinforcing trust, impermanence, and release.

My relationship with apparel began early. My mum studied fashion, and as a child I copied her designs and croquis, absorbing a strong sense of material, colour, and form. I grew up on the Ashdown Forest and spent summers in Cornwall, developing a close connection to nature and surf culture. Our home reflected this environment through natural objects, organic textures, and muted coastal tones—particularly linens in soft blues and greys—which continue to influence my design language.

I later studied Fashion Design at Leeds Beckett University, graduating with a First and receiving two Graduate Fashion Week awards from Fred Perry and Next. Today, my apparel work draws on this formal training alongside my upbringing and visual practice, translating illustration into wearable pieces rooted in texture, simplicity, and emotion.

Olalla brings together all aspects of my work. Whether through illustration, tattooing, poetry, or apparel, my practice is focused on storytelling, connection, and expression—creating work that invites reflection and encourages people to feel, relate, and talk.