Meet Nicole Rose Gelormino | Teaching Artist & Painter

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nicole Rose Gelormino and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nicole Rose, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
I have always been an artist and a teacher. For the last 7 years (including gestation) I have been a parent as well. As a young adult, I always organized my time using a triage model: What’s the thing that needs my attention before it becomes a crisis? What is most urgent? What is a need? What is a want…etc. My day job was the loudest baby I had, so I often prioritized that above all else, leaving studio at the bottom of the barrel. Becoming a parent turned my perspective on time inside-out. Since my daughter was born, I now prioritize things along my values. My family is the most important, so their basic needs come first (including love and attention.) Because I have a daughter, I have to model self-determination and self-care in a misogynist world. Therefore, my artistic practice is the next priority. I’ve also learned over the years that I cannot survive emotionally without my practice, so it is as necessary as food. My daughter believes her own ideas are brilliant, which affirms my choices. After that comes the integrity of my day profession, which is teaching art in public high school. I come from a family of public servants, so being present for our children is a sacred calling. Everything beyond that is extra: whether or not people buy my art, whether I decide to do extra favors for the school district, acquiring additional domestic luxuries, etc.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I make oil paintings of figures and landscapes composed of fragments of animals, food, plant matter, gestural brushstrokes and other sources. My daily drawing practice also provides starting points for many of the paintings. I capture abstract daydreams in India ink or water-soluble crayon. I re-invent the faceless characters of my paintings in clay. Through ceramics, the uncanny creatures come into 3-dimensional existence, sharing space with the viewer. I have produced a couple of intimate artist books and zines, some of which have been collaborations with my partner Carlos Daniel Perez-Boza and my poet friend Taylor Melligan. All of my subject matter exists in the imaginary, but it is based on real life. My work springs from the intersection of sensuality, intellect and psychology. I am fascinated with how emotional memories change the landscape of the body. And then we seek representations of those embodied memories in the sensual world we find ourselves in.

I am devoted to the lawlessness and honesty of artmaking. Creative practice is the most thrilling method of learning about ourselves and the world. I know I am an artist because if I stopped making altogether, I wouldn’t recognize myself and life would be intolerable. Therefore, making art is my job. I used to think that selling work was required to identify as a professional artist. Now, I know I have no control over the market and no control over the choices of gallery owners, curators or collectors. But it is still my job to keep making. And to keep showing. Several years ago, my partner Carlos Daniel Perez-Boza performed an exhibition of his own artwork on the streets of the Mission District of San Francisco. Since then, I don’t wait for art galleries to accept my work. When I want to show it, I invent my own exhibition opportunities on the street or in pop-up spaces.

I used to sometimes consider making art that people wanted to see. Now I only honor two motives for making: 1. Because I want to bring my vision into existence. 2. Because I need to grow artistically in some way. My artistic practice involves tons of deep reflection, reading literature of all kinds, intimate observation of the tactile world, and expanding my technique. Right now I am courting the idea of unifying my imaginary characters and settings into a make-believe alternate world where I can explore interpersonal psychology and some loose narrative.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Always the water and breathtaking views! Angeles National Forest has so many waterfalls after a good rain. And incredible lookout points from the mountain tops. The desert always changes me—whether up toward Mojave or out toward Joshua Tree. The beach is like church for my family. And so is live music. Small concerts stir my soul. There are great little venues scattered from East Hollywood to DTLA. Los Angeles is brimming with incredible art, especially painting! I have lived in San Francisco and New York as well, but Los Angeles has the best painting. And LA has excellent coffee everywhere! Otherwise, I won’t be trying to impress anyone inside of a restaurant. My best meals have been out of a grocery store, eaten in the back of our pickup truck parked on a hilltop.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
This is a big question. I often silently give gratitude to all the people who have helped shape my journey. The list is long, but here are some highlights: My mother Leslie Gelormino and sister Rosina Marie Gelormino for always believing in me.
My daughter for being the light of my life.
My husband Carlos Daniel Perez-Boza for always encouraging me to be a bigger, better version of myself.
My friend Amy MacKay for always modeling true self-realization.
And Kim García for growing a beautiful community of artists in Los Angeles.
I am heir to our great feminist master artists. The work of Ana Mendieta, Judy Chicago, Yoko Ono, Betye Saar and many others are the foundation upon which I build my practice.

Website: http://nicolerosegelormino.com

Instagram: @nicolerosegelormino

Image Credits
Nicole Rose Gelormino in the studio, photo credit Carlos Daniel Perez-Boza, 2023.