Nicole is a contemporary artist working from her studio in the hinterland of Sunshine Coast. Growing up in New Zealand Nicole completed formal studies in photography but after moving to Australia in 2003 she made a total change from lens to working with paint, preferring the physical, tactile process and creativity. During the following ten years Nicole completed courses in perspective drawing, portraiture, and techniques in three key mediums of oil, water colour, and acrylic. Nicole regularly paints outdoors (en plein air) or from life, which has developed her passion for creating loose, impressionist, and occasionally abstract art, using pattern, texture and colour. This plein air practice allows her the freedom of working in the moment while drawing upon learned skills and experience. “Impressionism is my favoured style, as it allows creativity and soul-input when exploring ideas inspired by nature but demands skill and consideration throughout the painting process. It is almost a deliberate effort to bypass considered application to concentrate instead on description and fleeting mood.”
In 2018 Nicole committed to a full year of ‘painting daily’ in an endeavour to further develop her intuitive, painterly response to the light and shadows of her subject and to find her own unique style and expression (see her Instagram account nicole.paintingaday started that year). This daily painting experience has strengthened her skills in quick observation and expressive brush strokes and helped develop the way she paints today. Nicole will sometimes work in water colour, which also demands speed and confident brush work, with the building up of washes and loose brush marks. Daily painting also introduced her to the fun world of sketchbook drawing and visual diary keeping.
Nicole’s aim as an artist is to capture fleeting moments in time; quiet moments, exciting moments, glimpses of colour that make you pause and reflect. To create painted impressions of life and places that may remind viewers of their own individual experiences and to produce art that uplifts, takes eyes away from our screens and back to the beauty, originality, and richness of life. “So, if people connect happily with any of my artworks, I feel my art journey is worthwhile… although I could not live without my daily expressions with paint.”
Although much of Nicole’s time is spent painting outdoors, her studio painting process is also very immotive and often starts with a sketch or photo taken on her plein air outings. Like writing a book, her painting layers can change and develop from one day to the next (especially with abstract work) and is deemed finished when she feels her artwork is happily settled (or delightfully conflicting as one collector described the painting he purchased).
Artists that have influenced Nicole in her art journey are: Margaret Olley (fabulous appreciation of everyday scenes); Paul Cezanne (colourful and often using dark outlines in his still life); Mazimilien Luce (pointillist using hazy soft colours); Paul Signac (pointillist style using beautiful colours in his shadows); David Atkins (beautiful Landscapes) (and more recently Richard Claremont (bold beautiful colours and design with thick lush paint).
Most Recent Exhibitions
Sunshine Coast Plein Air Painters Yandina Exhibition 2023
Immanuel Arts Festival 2023
Linden Postcard Show, Melbourne 2023
Linden Postcard Show, Melbourne 2022
Linden Postcard Show, Melbourne 2019
Seaview Gallery, Moffat Beach – Successful exhibiting member through 2019/20
Sunshine coast Plein Air Painters Yandina Exhibition 2019
Baked Poets Café, Perigian Beach - August 2018
Hall and Wilcox Private Exhibition, Brisbane - Sept 2018
Immanuel Arts Festival – purchased my painting for their school Foyer 2017
Alan Reading Memorial Art Awards – Highly Commended
Immanuel Arts Festival – has successfully exhibiting most years and awarded ‘Best Painting’
Eagles Nest Gallery, Great Ocean Road, Victoria prior to 2009