Today we’d like to introduce you to Nikki Diaz.
Hi Nikki, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I was born and raised in El Paso, TX, and I’ve been drawing and making art my whole life. I’ve lived in Austin for about twelve years now working as a freelance artist and in art education, teaching for over eight years. I knew I always wanted to be a working artist, specifically a painter. My mom was the first person to show me how to paint, then I just kept on going throughout school, as art club president in high school and things like that. Eventually, I went to college to study painting after a long time of feeling lost and trying other things.
I wasn’t encouraged to pursue art as a career. I feel, particularly from a cultural standpoint, it’s frowned upon if you’re not working a job that doesn’t seem like “hard work”. What my people don’t understand is that it is hard work, time-consuming and sometimes there is hardly any payoff. But I find that I’m truly a lot happier now than when I was trying to just focus on making money. I think what got my mind back into making art to support myself was my friend, Marlen. We met while teaching at an elementary school here in Austin and bonded right away, she’s from Laredo so right away, we shared that humor de la Frontera. She was also eager to get into making art and knew I was an artist, so she included me in a small business she and her sister were starting, Hermanas and Crafts. We started selling handmade art objects at different pop-ups around Austin and it was a great way to get my mind back into the game. Since then, I’ve been painting, working on murals, and doing other commissions.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Yes and no. I would say a mix of financial struggles coupled with lifelong anxiety made things harder. As I mentioned, there were a lot of opinions about what I should do with my life, and when I was younger, it would stress me out. For so long, I always carried the pressure of not disappointing anyone, particularly my family. So, I was always going back and forth with big decisions, like focusing more on making money at work or switching my majors in college. Like at one point, I decided to switch to a career path in nursing. I worked in that field for a few years, but I knew that it wasn’t what I wanted as a career. I loved the fulfillment of helping patients but otherwise, but it was rough, and I knew I had to go back to art. So, when I decided to go back to finish college at UTEP, I switched my major to Painting/Illustration. Afterward, I moved back to Austin where I got into public school teaching (because again – worried about finances), but a couple of years in it reminded me of when I was back working in nursing. I loved the students, but that school administration was a nightmare. I truly have a deep appreciation for both nurses and public school teachers because it’s often such a thankless, exhausting job. I love helping people, but I decided I needed to focus on my own mental health before I could do that again.
Honestly, even painting can sometimes be a struggle. When I was starting, it used to be so hard for me. Drawing came naturally to me, and it was automatic but almost every painting felt like a battle because I was never truly happy with them. I think it was part of that pressure I put on myself. It took a long time for me to realize, I have one life and I don’t want to waste it being stressed. So now I’m able to recognize those feelings and I learned how to let go and just be a lot less hard on myself.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I mainly specialize in painting and drawing but do mural work as well. I also take a lot of commission work, especially for portrait paintings. Recently I’ve also got to do more digital work and even some music videos for bands but that’s a new process I’m still learning as I go.
I’m most proud of my paintings. I have deeply personal paintings that I create for myself, and the best part is when I share them, and people connect to the image. Most of my work focuses on personal experiences, family, culture, and my hometown of El Paso. I love to use symbolism and religious iconography in my paintings, although I’m not religious, it’s a staple of Mexican culture to be immersed in it. I use it a lot to venerate people, objects, or places that seem mundane or forgotten. El Paso hangs on to a lot of old things, the city almost feels haunted, which I appreciate. I can reliably go back and find a crumbling old building or business still there since I was a kid. Whenever I come back to Austin. There’s always something new or different about it nowadays. I’m a sentimental, nostalgic person, so I guess that’s why I prefer communicating imagery from my past.
I also focus on matriarchal figures and cultural ideas regarding women. If you know me personally, you know my grandma is my number one inspiration. I feel like the women of my family have these amazing, often difficult stories, and they’re too humble, or just not around anymore, to pass these stories on. I’m the eldest in my family, so I’ve heard most of them and try to tell them in my paintings without being literal. I feel they’re not only relevant to my family but to a broad spectrum of Latinx people and women.
Any big plans?
As far as the near future, I’m working on a new series of paintings that I’m looking forward to sharing and helping with a big mural project in El Paso in June. I’ll be working on that one with my cousin, Kelsey Kilcrease, who is also a painter (check out some of her paintings at Gabriela’s downtown – she’s great too!). That’s going to be a big project for us because it’s very personal to our family but should hopefully resonate with many. Also since COVID, I haven’t taught any in-person classes, so I’m really looking forward to starting up again soon because I truly love teaching art.
Contact Info:
- Email: nikki.diaz.artwork@gmail.com
- Website: nikkidiaz.art
- Instagram: nikki.diaz.artwork
Image Credits
Personal photo by Leandra Blei Photography
