nico gozal

About the Artist

Nico’s cross-cultural art training rooted from his country of origin, Indonesia. He moved to the United States in 1990 to pursue a degree in design. Toward the end of his undergraduate studies, Nico had an amazing opportunity to work for and be mentored by a successful artist in Tampa, FL, Jane Murray Lewis. She introduced him to the world of Gutta/ Serti Silk painting. He uses lush white silk and the application of vibrant fabric dyes on his paintings. In some of his painting he assembles hand dyed and hand cut silk to create a bas relief / three dimensional surfaces. After devoting many years to his craft, Nico fused his academic training in Fashion Design, passion for color, and astute eye for composition with his new-found love of Silk painting to create his unique design concept. He brings to life in his paintings the sights, texture, and rich multicultural heritage of his equatorial roots from Indonesia. A love of music, dance, languages, and literature also intensely influences him and his work. Nico relocated to the Central Savannah River Area in 2012. To introduce his unique artistic skills to the region, he became a member of The Greater Augusta Arts Council and the Artists’ Guild Columbia County and the Arts & Heritage of North Augusta (among others). Throughout the years living in Augusta, GA; Nico exhibited his work as a collaboration with other artists at Augusta’s City Gallery, The Arts and Heritage of North Augusta Gallery, and 4 P Studio Art Gallery. He also had solo shows: At Hire Ground Café, Gertrude Herbert institute of the Arts, and 4P Studio Art Gallery. In 2017 and 2018 Nico was accepted in a juried art festival: “Arts in the Heart of Augusta.” In late October 2018 Nico left Augusta, GA to embark into his next art career by moving to the Washington, DC metropolitan area. Since then he has various group shows with Capitol Hill Artist League, The Art League of Alexandria and Maryland Federation of the Arts. In addition to a solo show at The Hill Center Gallery and at the Winer Gallery of Sharee Tefila Congregation, Nico has been accepted to several juried show in the area including:  “Asia North 2020” Asian Arts & Cultural Center of Towson university. May 08, 2020; Hill Center Galleries Regional Juried Exhibition 2020. February 5—April 18, 2020; “Reflection of Self” The 31st Annual Prince George’s County Juried Exhibit at Montpelier Arts Center, November 1st—December 30th 2019.His piece “Batik Parang Filigree” won first prize in a national juried show “By Design” at Capitol Hill Artists League in 2019 Currently you can find Nico’s work at Artworks@7 Gallery in North Beach and at Katsea Gallery in Towson, Maryland. He welcomes your email contact at NicoGSilkArt@outlook.com.  To find out more about Nico and his body of work, go to https://nicogsilkart.com or Facebook  and Instagram @ NicoGSilkArt.  

Artist's Statement

Stimulating personal experience in viewers through my artwork is a driving force behind my creative process. A recent event best illustrates my artistic perspective. I encountered a wheelchair-bound art enthusiast at a weekend art festival at my display booth. Her husband saw one of my pieces and decided to return and show it to his wife. As soon as she saw the piece her previously sullen face brightened and a wide grin appeared. She engaged me and proceeded to relay a personal story. “My friends always affectionately tell me that I move as fast as a turtle,” she said in a slow, stilted voice. “And this is me,” as she pointed to the image of a turtle in my painting. I could not have said it better. At that point I was poignantly reminded that I am not the one to explain how others should see my work. It is not about my ideas, inspiration, message, or statement… the most important thing about art is the personal narrative that emerges. Through my art I fuse my Indonesian ancestry with the newly acquired culture of my adopted country of America. Ultimately, I hope to show that art transcends the boundaries of race, language, culture, religion, and ethnicity.