Nicole Herz

Woodblock prints and paintings from Maine and New York City

About

Contact

Nicole Herz
Bar Harbor, Maine
nicole@nullnicoleherz.com

“A painter should paint not only what he sees before him, but also what he sees within himself.”  – Casper David Friedrich

“Nothing is less real than realism. Details are confusing. It is only by selection, by elimination, by emphasis that we get at the real meaning of things.”  – Georgia O’Keeffe

New York Work

Architectural elements, especially rooftops, play a personified role in the New York works of painter Nicole Herz. Herz explains, “My paintings depict the smaller skyline of New York City. They are inspired by the rooftops of the 19th century industrial-era factory buildings and smaller-scale residences of lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. On the roofs of these older buildings, I find complex relationships among the shapes, hues and textures of water towers, skylights, chimneys, vents and antennas.”

Through simplification, abstraction and the editing of color, composition and form, she isolates the objects and highlights their relationships to each other and to the sky. Herz says, “By reinterpreting the scene, I create a personal mood of place and time that expresses my most intimate reaction to the subjects.”

Maine Work

Nicole Herz’s interest in the simplification and abstraction of form continued to manifest itself in her paintings of rural Maine. In her early Maine paintings, she explores the worlds she finds both inside and reflected in the windows of abandoned houses and barns. Once inhabited and full of life, these old structures now exist on their own terms, still and sculpture-like, while still evoking the presence of past inhabitants.

On July 29, 2008, Herz lost 15 paintings in a fire at the Wingspread Gallery in Northeast Harbor, Maine. This was a devastating loss because the paintings consisted of most of her recent work. Many of these paintings were inspired by houses that have been since torn down. They memorialized the old structures that are vanishing from the landscape. Now the paintings are gone, too. All 15 paintings can be viewed on the website.

WOODBLOCK PRINTS

Since 2014, Nicole Herz been working in the traditional Japanese water-based woodblock printing technique (Moku Hanga), which uses using multiple blocks, water-based pigments, brushes, and multiple, hand-rubbed layers.

“Moku hanga has become the best way for me to interpret my personal vision. Using color, texture and form, from the drawing to the carving and printing, a series of tough decisions are make to create a strong and peaceful image.”

Herz’s recent work may be seen at the Artemis Gallery in Northeast Harbor, Maine, the Turtle Gallery in Deer Isle, Maine, and McKays Public House in Bar Harbor, Maine.

Bio

Born: New York City, 1966.

Education

  • Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA. Bachelor of Fine Arts, May 1989. Major: Painting; Minor: Sculpture.
  • Temple University Abroad, Spring Semester, 1988. Rome, Italy.
  • High School of Music and Art, Diploma, June 1985. New York, NY.

Exhibitions

  • Artemis Gallery, Northeast Harbor, ME, 2015–present.
  • Turtle Gallery, Deer Isle, ME, 2013–present.
  • Spruce and Gussy, Bar Harbor, ME, 2012–2020.
  • McKays Public House, Bar Harbor, ME, 2012–present.
  • Northeast Harbor Library, “Land and Sea,” Northeast Harbor, ME, 2014.
  • Gallery on Main, Southwest Harbor, ME, 2013.
  • Southwest Harbor Library, Southwest Harbor, ME, 2013–2014.
  • Art Essex Gallery, Essex, CT, 2012–2014
  • MDI Biological Laboratory, Bar Harbor, ME, 2012.
  • Northeast Harbor Library, “Little Things,” Northeast Harbor, ME, 2012.
  • Asticou Connection Gallery, Bar Harbor, ME, 2012.
  • Asticou Connection Gallery, Bar Harbor, ME, 2011.
  • Blum Gallery, College of the Atlantic, Bar Harbor, ME, 2009.
  • Freeport Square Gallery, “Where There’s Art There’s Hope,” Freeport, ME, 2009.
  • MDI Historical Society, “BIG and small,” Mount Desert, ME, 2009.
  • Wingspread Gallery, Northeast Harbor, ME, 2002–2008.
  • Stadler Gallery, Kingfield, ME, 2007.
  • The Window Tree Gallery, Brunswick, ME, 2006.
  • Maine Art Gallery, Wiscasset, ME, 2005.
  • Reel Pizza Cinerama, Bar Harbor, ME, 2005.
  • George Billis Gallery, “Industrial Beauty,” New York, NY, 2004.
  • Shaw Gallery, Northeast Harbor, ME, 2004.
  • Manhattan Athletics Club, New York, NY., 2004.
  • The Hay Gallery, “The Urban Show,” Portland, ME, 2003
  • Shaw Gallery, Northeast Harbor, ME, 2003.
  • Blum Gallery, College of the Atlantic, “Shelter,” Bar Harbor, ME, 2003.
  • Thorndike Library, College of the Atlantic, Solo show, Bar Harbor, ME, 2003.
  • Manhattan Athletics Club, New York, NY, 2001.
  • The New York Historical Society, “Up On The Roof,” New York, NY, 2001.
  • Flounders Society, Bar Harbor, ME, 2001.
  • Allbright Knox Gallery, Buffalo, NY., 2000.
  • George Billis Gallery, Solo show, New York, NY, 2000.
  • Westchester Medical Center, “A Winters Tale,” 19 Regional Artists, Valhalla, NY, 2000.
  • George Billis Gallery, New York, NY, 1999.
  • Tribeca Artists, OIM, New York, NY, 1998.
  • Franklin Fest, New York, NY, 1998.
  • New York Law School, “City Light, Six New York Painters,” New York, NY, 1998.
  • The Puffin Room, “The Loft Pioneer Show,” New York, NY, 1996.
  • Organization of Independent Artists, “Darker Visions,” New York, NY, 1996.
  • 420 West Broadway, S.O.S. Art Exhibition, New York, NY, 1995.
  • Michael Ingbar Gallery, “Architectural Details of NYC,” New York, NY, 1994.
  • Michael Ingbar Gallery, “Concrete Erections, NYC Architecture,” New York, NY, 1993.
  • Organization of Independent Artists, “Structures and Surfaces,” New York, NY, 1992.
  • Ward-Nasse Gallery, City Views, New York, NY., 1991.
  • Forbes Gallery, Invitational Exhibit, curated by Annegreth Nill, Pittsburgh. PA, 1989.

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