After leaving The Brady Bunch, Susan Olsen found herself creatively unfulfilled. Even though she was still getting the odd acting job, and she had steady radio work. She wanted something more. So, she started making art using Marshmallow Fluff.
“As a single mother I was very fortunate to have been able to do that,” she said. “The desire to make art never left me, and I found myself messing around on the computer. I would get an idea and then set out to teach myself how to do it. The Fluff Art started as a joke between friends and grew into a shared obsession.”
It’s called Fluff Art, and it’s an genre that’s Andy Warhol meets kitchen garbage bin. It’s all tongue-in-cheek, goofy fun, and a bit confusing. But all great art is hard to understand, I suppose. It feels like early versions of internet memes that have eaten their own tails. But Olsen’s work is pretty interesting. She recreated some of her favorite album covers like Nirvana’s Nevermind — re-titled to “Fluff Mind.”
Former Nirvana lead singer Kurt Cobain’s sister reached out to Olsen after she saw the painting.
“After doing this I became friends with Kurt Cobain’s sister and was rather surprised (happily) that the two of them watched ‘The Brady Bunch’ regularly while growing up,” Olsen said.
She also recreated the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Though, this version has fewer Beatles and more cans of Fluff and peanut butter.
It’s unclear if she’s still doing it or now. Her website domain wasn’t renewed, and most of the links to her work are from 2012.
But during that time, she was putting her talents to good use.
Susan Olsen Saved Cats With Fake Poop
During this time period the former The Brady Bunch star served on the board of directors for Precious Paws Animal Rescue in Glendale, California. They helped abandoned and feral dogs and cats find homes. It’s a noble cause, but not a cheap one. So, she used her notoriety and her art to raise money for the organization.
She had been making these gag gifts for friends, that featured Marshmallow Fluff shaped to look like — well, the title fills the description out. It’s called “Candy Kitten Crap.” She’s since expanded her operation to include “Candy Puppy Poop”
She even has an online shop that features photos of some of her celebrity friends such as Ed Asner and Kathy Griffin posing with the products.
