ARTIST STATEMENT

 “Uncanny” describes what is familiar, yet unknown. My artistic process begins with private excavation and ends with the uncanny. The source of my inspiration is an internal ocean of embodied feelings, experiences and memories. The physical, social, relational, familial and cultural forces of my environment influence its current, its tide, and its chemistry. I excavate psycho-visceral sensations from this well. In paint I seek to invent new forms I have not yet seen. I conceive characters, objects and places that match something I feel profoundly and viscerally. Most of these sensations do not have words, so through creative production, I bring them into visible existence. A mentor once called my approach to painting, “muscular.” The application and execution comes from my own physicality. The surfaces engage the senses—texture, color, smell. The eyeless “characters” and bottomless “landscapes” in my work are unrecognizable, yet they resonate with the body and invoke the kaleidoscope of memories and feelings it withholds. Over time, my process has become less of an intellectual or psychological experiment and more of an intuitive ritual. I have become less concerned about effective visual communication. Mine is a practice of wild exploration, curious healing and kindred offering.

Nicole Rose Gelormino is teaching artist from the San Francisco Bay Area. She currently lives and works in Los Angeles. Gelormino acquired her graduate and undergraduate degrees in art and art education in New York City. 

photo credit Carlos Daniel Perez-Boza