Nicholas is a contemporary artist based in Charlotte, NC. He works in mixed media, using oil paint, watercolor, house paint, charcoal, paper, and found objects in his paintings. His subjects are primarily figurative and floral with an emphasis on vibrant color and heavy paint marks. His work can be found in private collections across the United States. 

 

Nicholas spent part of his childhood on a cattle farm in rural West Virginia. With no other children for miles around he started drawing as a form of entertainment. He would sit by himself for hours and draw. His mother encouraged him and one of his fondest memories is of the art kits she would make for him when they took road trips. He drew dinosaurs and comics and saw himself as a future illustrator. 

 

His passion for drawing stayed with him through high school and upon graduation he started at Radford University as a drawing major. While in the art program he studied under two of his mentors, Halide Salam and Z.L. Feng, and through them found a love for painting. He spent seven years in the art program at Radford during which he became an Instructor of Record and obtained a Masters Degree in Painting. 

 

Upon graduation, Nicholas took a leap of faith and moved to Charlotte where he found another mentor, Andy Braitman. Nicholas flourished as his passion for creating met with his passion for sharing his knowledge with others. He began teaching classes and workshops and was invited to be a guest lecturer at many institutions. 

 

 He enjoys spending time with his wife and son, Kate and Charlie. His work is often influenced by Charlie, and nods to his childhood milestones can be seen in Nicholas’ art.

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Nicholas’ paintings are developed by structured impasto brush marks, emulsion pourings, glazes, and drawn lines. The play between the two dimensional and three dimensional surfaces creates an illusion which examines what is coming forward and what is flat. The brush marks breach through barriers of pattern, fields of color, and man-made structures.

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 Progressing from our instinctive to spiritual nature, our soul “unfolds” like a beautiful lotus. We begin our journey in our instinctive mind, the seed buried deep in the mud, bashing around with no real direction. We slowly evolve through the water, finally breaching the surface into the light. Here we bloom and blossom into our full potential and splendor.