Francesca Olsen is a quilter, writer, and consultant.
Her creative work focuses on storytelling, heritage, ritual, magic, and the power and significance held in objects and stories. As someone with Stage 4 cancer, she has adapted her practice to translate and document the experience of being in treatment.
Olsen is a connector whose work aims to build community by holding space for others who have their own lived experience with cancer. She hopes to create a dialogue that bridges survivors, caregivers, family members and supporters, providing perspective and education about cancer treatment and recovery to reduce stigma and prejudice.
In 2023, she worked with the Phelps Cancer Center in Pittsfield on a month-long exhibition of art by breast cancer survivors. A longtime professional writer, she has also shared her experience in B Magazine and Oprah Daily.
She is the recipient of a North Adams Project grant via MASS MoCA’s Assets for Artists, a 2021 grant from the North Adams Artist Impact Coalition to assist artists with marketing, and a 2022 grant from the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation’s Martha Boschen Porter Fund. In 2024 and 2025, working with WPA-inspired nonprofit Artists at Work, she is working with Ventfort Hall in Lenox on an exhibit and community activities.
She has reached hundreds of artists via digital marketing talks for various arts and culture organizations across New England, including MASS MoCA’s Assets for Artists, Mass Cultural Council, and the Rhode Island School of Design. As a consultant, she has helped dozens of artists shape their digital strategy and refine their digital presentation.
Grants and Funded Projects
Artists at Work North Adams Cohort - 2024-2025
Massachusetts Cultural Council COVID Recovery Grant - 2023
Providing Small Business Technical Assistance with Community Development Corporation of South Berkshire - 2022-present
Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation Martha Boschen Porter Fund - 2022
Providing Small Business Technical Assistance with 1Berkshire - 2021-2022
MASS MoCA’s Assets for Artists workshop trainer 2021-present
Artist Impact Coalition grant to provide digital marketing services for artists via National Endowment for the Arts - 2021
North Adams Project Grantee — MASS MoCA’s Assets for Artists - 2020