ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Photo by Brian Moore. Top by Daniel Chimowitz
Nikki is a graduate of The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and received her Master’s Degree in Paleolithic Art from the Université Lumière in Lyon, France. She lived in France for nearly a decade and taught English & Art History at a top ranked engineering university. In addition to exhibiting overseas, Nikki has traveled extensively and did humanitarian work in West Africa.
The artist lives in San Francisco and has a studio at Hunter’s Point Shipyard, a decommissioned naval base and home to the country’s largest artist community. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for The Shipyard Trust for the Arts, the nonprofit organization for the 300+ working artists & musicians of Hunters Point Shipyard Artists. She is passionate about environmental justice and also serves on the Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s Community Steering Committee for Bayview-Hunters Point.
Nikki’s work has been shown at Miami Art Week during Art Basel Miami Beach, the de Young Museum, Palm Springs Art Fair, Saks Fifth Avenue, as well as the 12,000 square foot digital billboard at Times Square in New York City as part of the world’s largest public art fair. She exhibits regularly in galleries and juried shows, and her work can be found in collections around the world.
ARTIST STATEMENT
Rooted in concept and emotion, my artwork is intuitively accomplished. I like working in series because of the constraint in repetition and the freedom to experiment with new mediums.
I love the unpredictability of abstract painting and the physical demands of working large. I build the canvases myself, and they are often bigger than me. My paintings are comprised of many layers, a process which forces me to slow down and examine my work. Painting has helped me learn patience.
My monochromatic series explore the coexistence of light and dark, both literally and metaphorically, while my colorful abstracts are often a reflection of my surroundings. My studio is located at a decommissioned naval base on the San Francisco Bay, and the proximity of water and nature has unconsciously become a recurring theme in my work.
Whether I am creating large scale works or experimenting with new techniques, I enjoy both the challenge and satisfaction painting brings me.
