Offsite Gallery 2013 “Time” – A Chrysler Museum Juried Fine Art Exhibition October 29 – January 12
Selden Gallery exhibiting artist 2014 “Consumption” April 4 – May 16
Offsite Gallery exhibiting artist 2017 “Artists Who Teach”
Nicole Harp is an accomplished painter with an extensive exhibition record and her works are held in many private collections. She attended Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia where she received her BFA in Communication Arts and Design. She is also an outspoken advocate for animal rescue and raises awareness through fund raising. A resident of Norfolk, Virginia, Harp shares her passion for art through teaching.
Nicole graduated from VCU in 1992 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, Communication Arts and Design. From 2001-2004 she was a Studio Art Instructor at the Chrysler Museum in Norfolk, VA. From 2000-2005 Nicole was an instructor at the Governor’s School for the Arts. In 2000 she became an art teacher at Granby High School.
Harp imagines herself a messenger, her hands the vehicle in the translation from soul to canvas. The strong, vibrant colors, energetic brush strokes and bits of text, express her need to relate and communicate. She beckons the viewer to join with her in her endeavor to find order and balance in a chaotic world where we feel the constant pull of opposites.
“As an painter, I use text and image to depict the subtle vibrations of nature. Symbols and graphics are used to create imager that draws the viewer back to the tension of opposites, perception and choice. Art uncovers, reveals our unconscious. Especially abstract art that is highly dependent on the beholders response to complete the work of art. Art changes according to the state of mind of the viewer, thus changing in sight and meaning from beholder to beholder.
The sustainable elements of the sun, wind, earth and water become the subtext of my images. The media, such as crude oil and coal, embody a different world – an unsustainable world full of oil slicks and coal dust. These materials express their own realities, not just my aesthetic or political decisions.
My LIFE images are fragments of the past reassembled with painterly techniques. The layered narrative demands a sense of overlapping time. Parallels seem to surface, appear and disappear, revealing a cohesive vision. A pattern emerges of the a culture that has gone global with its art, war and materialism.”
“The notion of the tension of opposites permeates the bright bold abstractions of painter Nicole Harp. In her search for self-awareness, Harp explores a variety of social and political concepts and their opposites, always seeking a much desired equilibrium. A partial black border manifests in most of her paintings, providing the line of stability that we all seek for balance.”
“…(She) endeavors to find order and balance in a chaotic world where we feel the constant pull of opposites.”
