Born in 1972 in Goes, the Netherlands, Jacco Olivier studied at the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam and continues to live and work there today. Combining painting and film, Olivier photographs a painting in progress as it evolves. The separate phases of his painting are then animated, recording a series of moments that, like fragments of memory, are evocative of stories but ultimately defy resolution.

Olivier's work has been exhibited internationally at venues such as the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver; the Istanbul Modern; and the Centre pour L'image Contemporaine in Geneva. His work was included in the 2005 Prague Biennial.