Nicole Merkens
My mother was a ceramics artist, so I grew up very familiar with clay as an art medium. I actually graduated from art school in Printmaking, but found my way back to clay. I have worked in clay, now, for 15 years, and began at Art Clay West at the beginning under the instruction of Debra Fritts. These days, clay is my full-time passion, and I maintain my own art studio in old Roswell.
My main artistic method is hand building with mixed media/ found objects. Through mixed media, I piece together images, shapes, colors and symbols; all chosen to produce specific effects. Their interaction with each other conveys an essence of being. I am a figurative artist and focus on the strong female as my subject matter.
My teaching philosophy is to encourage the student to be “fearless”. Try everything, do everything, mix everything; eventually you will come out with a formula that you know works for your style. There will be a lot of failure and it will only make you a better artist. I let the clay speak to me and my subject matter comes from experiences in my current life.
My creative process is to make art every day - don’t leave the creative flow. I travel often and to many places which allows me to step out of my own head and space. The world is a fascinating place, full of people living different experiences. I photograph everything, read everything, listen to everything, document everything, write it down; eventually I have a database of inspiration to draw from. I hope to keep creating art daily and to start a small business so I can travel with fellow artists, to teach and learn with them.
