“Play. Without it, we cannot invent. Without invention, we cannot progress.â€

My art really began again, in its current form, in 2003. At that time, I had begun the process of some internal realization and change. I was 27.

I began walking four miles every morning before work which, while making me lose pounds that needed to go, also allowed me a time of peace to think and observe. I challenged myself on my walks to make better time, or to jog longer and longer milestone distances. These were things I never thought I could do. I also really looked at nature, its rhythms and the shapes it created.

It was through this process that I realized I had forgotten my true-self and art. I had won numerous awards and even attended college sessions for art during summers while I was in high school. I majored in art in college, but graduated with a more sensible liberal arts degree. After that, like many people, I succumbed to the good advice of family and society and found myself working in an office shortly after graduation.

On a walk one morning, I looked up at the sign for the road I had taken so many times. It was “Art School Rd.†in Chester Springs, PA. I felt so much in the right place at that moment and I laughed heartily to myself about the blatant message. I was only able to see the sign once I had overcome something I didn’t think I could do. Needless to say, that was the moment in which I decided to fulfill my dream of going to art school.

I began working full-steam creatively in order to prepare applications to schools. I contacted professors from college and signed up for local classes in painting and ceramics. It was frustrating at first since I’d been away from creating art for a number of years. I had gone from spending a substantial time on art daily to none at all, and the ease with which I could work had diminished considerably.

However, soon enough, I was creating work I loved and was accepted to not one, but two schools for art. One of which was in Italy and the other at the School of the Art Institute in Chicago. So, in 2004, I packed up my worldly belongings to be put in storage, left the heinous job that informed me to “sublimate my creativityâ€, said goodbye to my friends, my boyfriend and family, and went on a life-changing trip. I was taking my first vacation in 7 years and realizing a dream I had for some time.

To give some context here, I had always pushed myself to do well in school and attend better schools through scholarships and testing. Often, I could not afford the fieldtrips and activities the other students enjoyed, but I was grateful for the education. For college, I worked full- time while maintaining a full course load. And, I worked to support my family and very young brother financially as much as I could. Taking this time to do something for myself was unprecedented and unexpected by everyone, including me.

For my vacation, I spent almost two weeks on a sailing ship touring ancient harbors and vineyards on the European coast of the Mediterranean. I visited the Matisse Museum, Matisse’s Church, Manet’s home and the Maeght Foundation. I visited Corsica and Barcelona, enjoying the love of life and art in Gaudi’s work, and I developed a new appreciation for the art of making and drinking wine that I keep with me today.

At the end of the trip, I flew to Florence with what was left of my “stuffâ€, two suitcases, and was soon on my way to Montecastello di Vibio in Umbria for six weeks at The International School of Drawing, Painting and Sculpture. This experience too would change me forever.

Living in Montecastello di Vibio was like waking up in to a dream every day. It was, quite literally, a castle on top of a mountain. I had a beautiful house to live in and a full studio to myself in another building across the courtyard. In this paradise, we had a rigorous schedule. Instructed Painting outdoors from 8-12 with advisement and daily critique, lunch and then drawing from 1-4. Sculpture was 6-8 and often there was a lecture after dinner. Many of us painted in our studios late at night in order to finish the day’s work. We had some of the most excellent professors in the World teaching us. Professors from the New York Studio School, Yale Arts Graduate School, Haverford College and The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. On Fridays, we would go on trips to local museums and cities within driving distance, studying beautiful Italian art and enjoying the country.

My work improved so much there that I sold a painting, wet, on the side of the road for 100 Euro! This inspired me to work even more and think about future possibilities.

In August of 2004, I returned home filled with love and art and many good paintings. My overall perspective was more positive than it had ever been. I was changed fundamentally for the better.

When I came home, however, my world was shaken. My boyfriend of 10 or so years had cheated and left me while I was away, never to speak to me again and he had left me in debt and worry for many things unattended to. Our friend group soon split and all that seemed familiar was different all of a sudden. I was very distraught that month as I lived on the floor of my father’s apartment, fought to get financial aid and prepared to move to Chicago. I managed to sell a few paintings in that month which allowed me to go to get to Chicago. I was torn between great happiness and depression, but what I had learned and what I was going to achieve kept me going. In the end, the split was one of the best things to have happened for me.

The School of the Art Institute was an amazing experience for me. I began being trained in Conceptual Art and was exposed to new ways of thinking and artists’ work that challenged and inspired me. I had never lived in a city before, much less one as big and cosmopolitan as Chicago, so the entire experience was about newness and being present. The caliber and sophistication of my artwork grew at an incredible pace. By the end of my time there, I had matured as an artist so much that I was accepted to Graduate School at the University of the Arts that summer. There, my work was pushed to even greater levels. I still only had my two suitcases and my art.

That Fall, I moved to Philadelphia into a shared low-income house with friends. I retrieved my belongings from storage and I lived happily while we shared the roaches and good times. Soon, though, the money ran out and I needed to drop school and go back to working. The mounting debt had finally caught up to me, and, I think, I needed time to process what I had learned over the past two years.

The following year, from working, I was able to move in to a grand artists’ loft in the Kensington area of Philadelphia. I had some down time from creating art, but the drive to create again overcame me again. Inspired by the open 1700 square foot space in an old sewing factory, I began experimenting with all sorts of new media. I surrounded myself with the most creative and talented people. I acted in Spidermania and a Midsummer Night’s Dream with the Theater in the Garden Players. I worked with amazing musicians. I painted canvases 20 feet long, I had art parties and I began to learn Photography. Every night when I came home from work, I was stretching myself creatively in some way, from self-portrait photography to designing pyramids from yarn to inspire more connectivity to the creative. Finally, I began to work with the computer. This is where I began to blend disciplines. I took my Photographs, which, at the time were wonderfully kitsch and ironic, and blended them with text. I worked with the images in Photoshop to achieve whatever mood I wanted to get across and began developing a Website for them. The website led to a good deal of interest in my work and several shows.

Then, the fire happened. An apartment upstairs caught fire and, from sprinklers and other water damage, everything I owned was destroyed, including all my artwork and painting supplies. This was a tough time. All I had worked for, the new furniture and life was taken away in one night. It took months for the insurance fight to end. I was again sleeping on the floor in a borrowed new apartment, this time, for three months.

During this time, without cable, without a bed, I still created art. I drew a lot at this time, seemingly changing modes from the Photographic kitsch to the more traditional with my work.

In this positive mode, I reconnected with someone I had dated years before, and, after the trauma surrounding the fire settled, we moved to a small suburban apartment. I was and continue to be inspired and motivated by the partnership acquired through attracting positivity. The love and support, I could not be more grateful for and am honored to have found.

I set up my workspace smack dab in the middle of the living room in that tiny apt. That way, it was always in front of me, calling me. I worked daily after my day-job, often in to the early hours of the morning. I worked until I discovered that I was printmaking with the convenience of modern equipment. From there, I started working on the dialog between the digital and hand-drawn pieces… always discovering through process.

Finally, in early 2008, I seemed to crack the visual code, resulting in the work you see today. Success seemed to build from that moment.

I was granted several solo shows in 2008 and my work was even featured on the cover and within Philadelphia Stories.

In 2009, the amount of shows has doubled and the dinner discussions with friends have turned into a major draw. Friends of friends were on a list and donations were being given to me without solicitation. Through these Art and Wine parties, I was asked by certain participants to speak about my creative methods and processes at schools and businesses. My life in creativity began to form around me.

I love my life everyday. I am surrounded with art from the moment I wake up through late night. I enjoy the chance to meet with artists and people who love art. I truly believe there is a creative force within everyone and tapping in to it improves their lives. I hope to have the opportunity to continue living “The Art that is Life†and to share the journey with others.

BFA- School of the Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago, Il)

BA- Bryn Mawr College (Bryn Mawr, PA)

Certificate- International School of Drawing, Painting and Sculpture (Umbria, Italy)

MFA- University of the Arts (incomplete) (Philadelphia, PA)

<a href=http://www.nicolekristianastudio.com>
Philadelphia Artist</a>