Marcia Nickols

I spent the first 8 years of my life in Hawaii and the rest in the Midwest. I would say that I have lived in and around water my whole life and that it is and always has been a part of my soul. When I am painting, I enjoy watching the colors run and change on the surface and within the depths. Finding ways to make the paint do what I see, fascinates me. I use glazes of over lapping colors that I can mix to create a color that is so unexpected and yet it is perfect in nature. We are in a world of so much color and we often miss most of it, it has become a goal to find these colors for all to see. Light also reflects unexpected colors which is seen so much in the Impressionists painting that inspire me so much.

​I graduated with an art education major from UW Eau Claire and a Masters in art education from UW Madison. I taught art for 35 years, and have been teaching at the Clearing and privately since moving to Door County in 2006. My greatest pleasure in teaching was getting students to see colors, be their own artist with their own creativity and develop confidence within themselves and their art. I have learned so much about creativity working with the young minds that are not yet changed by what people think it should be. They have inspired me every day in the classroom.

In Door County I have volunteered at the Hardy Gallery, Peninsula Art School, The Clearing and the Door County Art League. I have met so many artists here and have learned so much from taking all the classes I could from all of these wonderful artists, Kari Anderson, Bridget Austin, Judy Barnswolt Jones, Wendell Arenson, Collettte Odaya Smith, Tom Seagard, to name a few of them. I have exhibited at the Miller Gallery, Hardy Gallery, Gunzel Gallery and Wisconsin Museum of art in West Bend. I have also studied in France, Egypt, Sicily, and Ireland with Ed Fenendael.