I’ve always enjoyed making things by hand and when I began Inkblots in 2002 my business focused around that. In 2012, I decided it was time to step out from behind Inkblots and be the face and name of my business: Giesla Hoelscher.

My passion for photography and the love I developed in college for digital collage eventually won over my desire to continue making things by hand. I let go of those items and started creating collages of areas around the Twin Cities, starting with “A Celebration of Saint Paul”.

Why do I make collages of places? Because we’re shaped by places. Diners, drive-ins, neighborhood markets, they’re all a part of our history. The memories and stories that we’ve attached to these places is what motivates me to document them. Because of that, I don’t use stock photos to create my artwork. While it takes a lot longer and prevents me from creating a huge catalog of images, traveling to take the photographs for a collage teaches me more about the country I live in and pays respects to your memories and stories. It’s important to me that my artwork is not just tourist spots that I research on the internet, but places that you truly love.

If you see beauty in my artwork, I believe that to be the result of the beauty of our history and of your stories.