Atlanta Artist, Nicole Merkens, follows “No Rule of Thumb”

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

By Madison Massey. “It is important to know the local art scene and what is happening in our corner of the art world,” validates local Atlanta artist, Nicole Merkens. Art is one of Atlanta’s driving forces attributed with keeping up our nation-wide reputation as an eclectic entertainment metropolis. The laid back mother of two, living and working out of North Fulton, is just one of many artists helping to keep Atlanta’s art scene alive.

Nicole Merkens moved to Roswell in 2005 strapped with a Bachelor in Fine Arts from the University of Fine Arts in Philadelphia. However, her move to Georgia would lead to a continuing education through the superb arts programs offered at the Roswell Recreation Center. Upon taking some mixed media and clay classes with husband and wife artists, Frank Shelton and Deborah Fritts, Nicole approached the Heaven Blue Rose Gallery on Canton Street in historic downtown Roswell. The gallery would be the first to feature her inspiring work, with a featured show entitled, “No Rule of Thumb”. This show garnered rave reviews in the AJC, and from there, “things just clicked.”

More gallery shows would follow at other venues, such as the Fine Line Gallery in Grant Park. Nicole works in several different mediums, including metal, clay, and found objects. Her original focus was in jewelry making, which she now describes as her “little sculptures”, though she found herself increasingly drawn to working in larger creations. Nicole enlightens me, “I love the physicality of working with tools and really getting lost in a piece.” Now, when she finds herself in need of a fix of instant gratification, achieved by quickly finishing a small piece, the artist returns to her “little sculptures”.

A common question for any artist, I had to ask Merkens where she finds the inspiration for her work. “Oh, I find inspiration everywhere; in silly things my kids say, in nature, in junk heaps, in cemeteries, in history. I love the history of my civil war town, and regularly tour the plantation homes and historical spots to get out of my immediate ‘space’ and tap into some other forms of energy.”

As in all aspects of Atlanta business, the economy has impacted the art world, as well. Two of galleries that featured Merkens’ art have been forced to shut their doors, due to the difficult financial times. Although, you can still view her work at the Meditating Mantis Gallery in Roswell, the Heeney in Atlanta, and she is currently in talks with a gallery in Blue Ridge. “I am constantly marketing myself and trying to stay afloat in these rocky times. I am not a starving artist, because I never stop working. If I know the economy has people’s price point at $50, I just make more jewelry…It’s a balancing act, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.” Fearing that the business side of opening her own gallery would have a negative impact on the creation aspect of her work, Nicole has merely toyed with the idea. She does note her desire to attend graduate school in hopes of teaching her craft to others some day.

Having attended most of Atlanta’s many arts festivals at some point or another in my own life, I was interested in which of the city’s events was Nicole’s favorite. “The East Atlanta Strut is, by far, my favorite. The neighborhood is charming, the art isn’t your average art show stuff, and the people are delightful!” During this year’s September 19^th festival, the artist was finally able to feature her pieces with a tent of her own. However, the artist experienced an unfortunate turn of events, “I, actually, had my own booth this year in the show; just my luck it was the weekend we had the flood, and I had a raging river running through my tent.” True to her easy going demeanor, she chalks the incident up to, “…a good story now that it’s over!”

Nicole Merkens truly is one of Atlanta’s artistic treasures. It is a pleasure to be in her presence, and she has an original artistic vision that is equally as pleasurable to observe. If you are interested in seeing more of Merkens’ work, you can check her out at nicolemerkens.com or her ETSY shop, artgirl253.etsy.com.

A small photo gallery of Nicole’s work:
(click on the images to see higher resolution version and then once again for even higher one)