“Every human has four endowments – self-awareness, conscience, independent will, and creative imagination. These give us the ultimate human freedom: the power to choose, respond, and change.” Stephen Covey. Artist Nicole McCaigue fully embraces the four endowments in every creative project. As a native of Arizona living in Tempe, Litchfield Park, Flagstaff, Prescott Valley, Chandler, and presently Queen Creek with summers in the pines of Prescott, Arizona, Nicole “gets” Arizona’s diversity in climate, flora, and fauna. All become inspiration for her next creative piece.
Nicole credits her creativity to an aunt who knitted slippers for every family member at Christmas. She remembers the joy such a thoughtful, one-of-a-kind gift brought to the recipients. Nicole knitted creativity into her higher education goals when she received her bachelor’s degree in elementary education with an emphasis on art from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona. Today, Nicole is a lifelong learner as a self-taught artist, working primarily in two-dimensional space. However, she enrolls in classes and workshops regularly to hone her skills and explore new applications for the mediums she enjoys working in. Nicole comments, "I create large paintings, photographing and scanning my artwork to make paper and canvas prints along with greeting cards in my Queen Creek, Arizona studio.”
The natural world outside her studio area provides endless inspiration during the spring when the fountain attracts visiting birds, and the elm trees and lantana create inviting habitats for hummingbirds and butterflies, two subjects Nicole prefers when working in watercolor. She also enjoys meeting up with a group of women artists at various times of the year to share what the individual artists are working on and trade new techniques developed during extended education and exploration opportunities. "I also use my seventeen years of experience teaching art to kindergarten through high school when offering classes for adults interested in a wide range of drawing and painting classes."
In the past couple of years, Nicole's commission work has picked up in the realm of pet portraits and series pieces. She explained her style, "I express it with many layers applied to the canvas using acrylic inks, spray paint, papers, texture mediums, acrylics, and oils. A combination of techniques creates depth and vivid jewel tones in my work."
Nicole maintains a busy schedule as an Artist-in Resident throughout Arizona. She also participated in the Fall Prescott Studio Art Tour, the Hidden in the Hills Artist Studio Tour in Scottsdale, and various art festivals. Nicole has exhibited in the Prescott Galleries, the Holland Gallery of Fine Art in Scottsdale, and the Gallery at El Pedregal in Scottsdale. Her work is in private collections in Canada, New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Her ultimate way of expressing her unlimited freedom is through her expansive imagination, using many media, working large and with vibrant color combinations that are a unique aspect of her work.
Email: nicole@mccaigue.com
Website: www.mccaigue.gallery
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