Arleen Olshan
Arleen Olshan is a visual artist and hand crafter of custom leather work who uses her artistic practice to preserve and pass on LGBTQIA+ history. She has been active in the LGBTQ+ and Feminist Communi.es for nearly 60 years in Philadelphia and beyond. Beginning in the late 1960s, Arleen worked with Radicalesbians and the Gay Activist Alliance, was the co-coordinator of the original Gay & Lesbian Community Center (now William Way), and was the co-owner of Giovanni’s Room, the oldest LGBTQ and Feminist bookstore in the country, from 1976-1986.
In addition to her continued activism, Arleen has also fostered creative communities through her work as a teaching artist and was the co-founder of the Mt. Airy Art Garage, a neighborhood arts hub, gallery, and studio space in Northwest Philadelphia, where she worked for 14 years, developing exhibition space, educational programs with youth and seniors, and collaborations with a variety of communities.
Arleen has always wanted to do work that was meaningful, where she could be Out & Proud. Her current work, Dead Dykes and Some Gay Men, focuses on a celebration of LGBTQIA+ ancestors, primarily Philadelphians, who helped lay the foundation for LGBTQIA liberation in our city and at-large. This project is being funded by the Leeway Foundation’s Art & Change Grant (February 2025) and the Velocity Fund (April 2025).
Awarded Grants
2025
Window of Opportunity Grant (WOO)
Related grantees
Overview
Arleen Olshan has the opportunity to present her ongoing project, Dead Dykes and Some Gay Men, in Hart, Michigan during Amazon Spirit Week, a sober, intergenerational gathering for women, trans, and non-binary people, in July. A lifelong lesbian feminist activist and artist, Arleen will lead a workshop and display 20-30 portrait paintings of predominantly Philadelphia-based LGBTQ+ ancestors whose stories have often been erased from public memory. The project was sparked by a promise to her friend Gil Forman, a ballet dancer and AIDS activist, who asked her to paint him so he wouldn’t be forgotten. Through printed reproductions, biographies, and communal storytelling, Arleen invites participants to be in dialogue with these ancestors and carry their legacies forward. This opportunity builds on Arleen’s 50+ year commitment to art and activism, offering a powerful way to honor LGBTQ+ histories and inspire the next generation to live openly and with purpose.
The WOO Grant will support Arleen with registration fees, as well as travel, lodging, food, and printing reproductions of the work.
2024
Art and Change Grant (ACG)
Related grantees
Overview
Arleen Olshan will create a series of portraits featuring predominantly Philadelphia-based LGBT ancestors who were friends, lovers, co-workers in various community activities, and family of choice, to tell their stories so they will not be forgotten. This project, entitled Dead Dykes and Some Gay Men, will remember and celebrate the people who helped lay the foundation for LGBT activism and organizing in Philadelphia and at-large, through their outspoken activism, humanity, and persistence. The work will be in oil and acrylic paintings, charcoal drawings, and scanned fine art prints in a variety of sizes and shapes – and culminate in an exhibition.
