Meet Nhatt Nichols | Graphic Journalist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nhatt Nichols and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nhatt, is there something you can share with us that those outside of the industry might not be aware of?
Regardless of your medium, being an artist requires you to be just as creative outside of the studio as you are in it. When I went to art school, I thought that as soon as I graduated I would make art in the studio and show it in galleries, and that would be my job.

I had no idea that the traditional art world is steeped in nepotism or that most artists are either supported by a trust fund or never able to leave their day job. It took me almost eight years to figure out how to make comics in a way that supported me financially, and in the process, I figured out how to keep my work fresh and exciting by relying on my curiosity.

Graphic Journalism is a pretty new field in some ways, but by combining my skills as an artist and a journalist, I can reach a diverse range of clients. I spend as much time pitching to journals, magazines, and small businesses as I do applying for artistic grants and gallery shows.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
The first time I seriously tried drawing, I was already in my late twenties. A close friend had just died, and I wanted to draw a comic about our time together. So I picked up a Bic and discovered that drawing is really hard.

The experience led me to The Royal Drawing School, and I’ve been a working artist since finishing their graduate program in 2011. I’ve had a lot of career twists and turns, but I’m delighted with where I am.

The most important thing I’ve learned has been to follow the opportunities you’re most excited over. I’m multidisciplinary, so when the opportunity came up to work with one of my favorite poetry presses and create a graphic poetry book, I said yes. The result is a stunning book that pushed my writing and drawing abilities to new levels. This Party of the Soft Things has also opened doors to teaching and to working with other artists and writers that I’ve met through readers and bookstores around the world.

My daily practice is much more non-fiction based. I work for several news outlets, including The Daily Yonder, to create comics that highlight an aspect of the news that might be easily overlooked. From creating comics about the USDA and Black farmers to the history of municipal canning, my work reaches an audience that’s very different from what it would if I had chosen a gallery career.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Stories Books and Cafe! They have the best variety of small press books, plus great coffee and beer options. If you’re in town for the LA Zine fest I highly recommend going, it’s one of the best places to meet awesome creators.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Big shoutout to The Daily Yonder. They took a risk by letting me create comics for them, and it’s been so amazing to be supported by editors who value what comics journalism can bring to the table.

Website: nhattnichols.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nhatt_attack_comics/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nhatt-nichols-1b3b9492/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nhattattack

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nhattdrawsadventure/

Image Credits
Headshots by Andrew Wiese