Nicole Dixon
Nicole Dixon was born in Oakland, CA and in 2002, received a BA in Studio Art at Spelman College in Atlanta, GA. In addition to exhibiting paintings, she has produced commissioned works, and installations for community engagement. She has served as the altar-artist for numerous gatherings, conferences and activist organizations. She is also a Montessori preschool teacher, and firmly believes education and creative expression should go hand-in-hand. She has taught art to youth and adults alike, which has taken her as far as the Kalahari as guest art instructor. Nicole uses art as an interactive medium, and vehicle for self-transformation, community bridge-building, and positive social change.
In creating a blueprint for advancing the architecture of Black culture, I am compelled to draw from the wisdom of the ancestors, and of mother earth herself. There is no moving forward without understanding both the lessons of the past and the resources of the present. I collect them, and weave them together to create archetypal figures. Each figure counters mainstream narratives of Blackness and upholds true Black identity.
Navigating this world as a Black woman, I use art to find the transcendent purpose of my experiences and create cathartic figures. Each mixed media material has its own resonance, and their layering reflects the complexity of the subject matter. The natural, cultural, and spiritual symbols all reflect, embolden, and honor the figures. Each figure is rooted in and strengthened by ancestry.
As a Black woman and an artist, nature is both my teacher and my healer. Nature is constantly showing us that everything is intricately connected, and our very existence is just life’s longing for itself. As I often seek refuge in nature, her abundance, generosity, and cyclic renewal are life lessons for my own path. I use natural imagery and materials in my work to infuse my figures with palpable energy and power. My sincere hope is that viewers walk away associating unapologetic blackness with beauty, power, abundance, and spirit.
