Rising Stars: Meet Nicole Powell

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicole Powell.

Hi Nicole, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I’ve always loved art and artists from the time I was young, but at the time I felt as if I was not an artist. My interests lay in nature, science, and books. While I pursued different creative outlets, like dance, band, choir, and the occasional drawing class, I always saw art as just some hobby or some mysterious talent that only special people got to have. When I graduated high school and attended college, I went to ASU for a Bachelor’s in Biochemistry. Other than a single drawing class, I did not have any education in creating art at all. Although I did love my studies and learning how the word worked on a deeper level.

Then I went into the workforce. The jobs I was able to get with my degree didn’t bring me the joy and fulfillment I was hoping for. I wanted more for my life than just pushing buttons on a machine every day. I wanted to bring meaning to other people’s lives, and for my work to have more purpose than just paying my bills. I wanted to love what I was doing!

In 2018, as I was trying to figure out if I wanted to go back to school or not, a friend of mine introduced me to the Milan Art Mastery program. It was a local program that taught everyone how to make art and find their voice (now it is an online program!) I was unsure about it as I didn’t really want to be a professional artist, but I figured that at worst, I would have a good time building a new skill for a year before going on to something else.

Something happened to me while I was learning how to paint, how to draw, how to create my own sources, and my own process. I fell in love with the act of putting my skills, feelings, and passions onto canvas for others to enjoy.

Technical excellence was only one part of what made a painting beautiful and I loved how I could use my skills to highlight what I found beautiful. Little pieces of nature that I found so fascinating; like butterflies, beetles, mushrooms, praying mantis, flowers, etc; could be highlighted in the artwork I made. My passion for the sciences and nature combined with a newfound love of creating into the style of artwork I make today. Roughly six to eight months into the one-year program, I declared myself an artist. I haven’t looked back even once!

Today I am working on building my online presence as well as adding to the shows I attend every year. It is an absolute joy to make connections with collectors and fellow artists alike! I am also a mentor with the same school that I learned from, the Milan Art Institute, where I get to share my passion for art and learning with like-minded individuals!

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
While the transition from science to art happened rather rapidly, I wouldn’t say it was perfectly smooth. I graduated from my program, ready to start my art journey, months before 2020 began. Trying to get your name out there when everyone has to stay home was difficult. I made money where I could while working on my art portfolio. As things began opening up, I was able to share my work with more people but I had unfortunately lost much of the momentum that I had previous to 2020. Thankfully, last year I began attending art shows and fully immersing myself in the artistic community we have here in Arizona.

The greater and ever-present struggle has been with my own self-doubt. Am I creating the right kind of artwork?

Does anyone want to see a giant praying mantis in a painting? Am I really an artist when I don’t create like the other artists I admire? I think no matter what your passion is, doubts are something we’ve all experienced. The most important lesson I’ve learned is to let go of comparing yourself to others. Your path is yours and is different from everyone else’s. Let go of perfectionism, and let go of thinking you need to be like everyone else because it’s by being your own imperfect self that you will attract the people who need and want what you have to offer.

In my case, that’s a spotlight on the little unnoticed things of nature!

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a mixed media artist that focuses on paintings on canvas and paper (although this year I’m starting a series on wood panels!) My artwork focuses on putting a spotlight on the unnoticed but beautiful parts of nature while encouraging others who feel ‘too odd’ to be beautiful that they are beautiful too.

My current artworks are heavily inspired by vintage scientific illustrations and bringing nature to life off of the page.

I like to leave the background abstract so that all of the focus can be on the insect, mushroom, or flower I want to feature. My process includes many different materials as well! Spray paint, acrylic inks, drawing in ink pen which I then collage, mark making, acrylic paint and oil paint provide a mix of mediums that allow me to have freedom of expression while also allowing for semi-accurate representation of my subject. I would say my style would be “Scientific Impressionism.”

I also get to mentor other artists with the online school that I learned from, the Milan Art Institute, and share the wisdom and skills that I have gained over the last few years.

Risk-taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I would definitely say that leaping into the art world from the scientific world is a risk in itself! I never did think of myself as a risk-taker. I was always the ‘mom friend’. The one who warned you about the dangers of what you were going to do, and the one with bandaids in her purse in case of a scuffed knee. I played it safe for most of my life, which is why this career path was almost as much of a surprise to me as it was to those who know me. However, I’ve never felt freer than I do now.

Free to learn more about who I am as a person. How do I really want to dress, how do I really want to act, what do I want my relationships to really look like? Taking good risks leads to more bravery and boldness. One risk lead to another and I took my first trip overseas to the beautiful country of Greece on an art trip. I have met people, doing things that I never would have considered before. Even just wearing clothes that make me stand out instead of letting me melt into the background.

For all of you shy wallflowers out there, not all risk is bad. Sometimes it’s okay to live life with a little bit of abandon. It’s okay to end up with a scuffed knee sometimes. That’s how we learn, that’s how we grow, and that’s how we discover who we really are and want to be.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://nicolepowell.art/
• Instagram: @nicole.powell.art