THE STUDIO OF NICOLE MERKENS

  I am so honored to be in the September Edition of the Greet Eldorado Magazine this month. The featured article talks about my move to Santa Fe, New Mexico and my art I am currently creating here. Its been a journey and I am so excited to share it with the art community.  https://greetmag.com/locations/eldorado-nm/  Please come visit me this year on the Eldorado Studio tour at studio #36. Sept 19-20 10- 5pm.  https://www.eldoradoarts.org/  

I will be Studio #36 this year for the Eldorado Studio Tour. Please join me again at my studio this year for the 2026 Eldorado Studio Tour September 19 & 20. 10AM-5pm both days. I look forward to showing you what I have been working on. www.eldoradoarts.org  See you in September, Nicole

  COC 2026 Clay Speaks of Home at Santa Fe Community College -- a reflection. BY Nicole Merkens Full Review can be found here. By Nicole Merkens I slipped in early to see Celebration of Clay 2026 Clay Speaks of Home at Santa Fe Community College. The opening reception was set for March 5 from 4 to 6 pm at the Visual Arts Gallery, 6401 Richards Avenue in Santa Fe. I wanted the quiet before the crowd. I wanted to hear the work breathe. The Visual Arts Gallery at the Santa Fe Community College, with the show, Clay Speaks of Home. Photo by Nicole Merkens.  This year the show was blind juried by Elizabeth Hunt, Santa Fe, Serit deLopaz Kotowski, Taos, and Mary Sharp Davis, Albuquerque.  Seventy-six artists as well as the jurors stepped forward to wrestle with the notion “Clay Speaks of Home.” That topic is not simple. It is loaded. It carries dust, memory, grief, safety and longing. The gallery was full. Pieces lined the space in every shape and size. There were more ...

I am so honored to have my ceramic piece, "Be Still My Heart" 34"hx13"wx11"d for the "Las Damas X Ominum Existential Work From New Mexico's Female Artists" Show at the Ominum Gallery in Taos, NM featured in the Tempo Magazine of the Taos News. Jan 29- Feb 4, 2026 edition. The opening on Saturday night was hopping with the art scene of Taos and people came from all over the state.  Below are some amazing shots taken by the amazing photographer Bill Curry. www.curryimages.com  instagram : @billcurryphotographer  The show is up until March 22 at Omnihum Gallery Taos, NM. https://www.omnihum.life/ OmniHum Gallery 246 Ledoux Street Taos, NM

  I was asked to create a piece with the focus being " HOME" for a show. After much journaling and introspect I bring you "Where Am I Going? Where Have I Been". She is 29"h x 11"wx6.5"d. I don't usually like to start work with a direction ( I like the universe to dictate where I am at the moment- and ultimately the universe did). "This work is a deep dive into “home” the ever-shifting landscape where the heart learns to root, uproot, and root again. Home is the place you carry like a reliquary: tucked in small boxes, hung in frames, pressed against the tender chambers of memory. Each one is an altar of what has nourished you… and what has undone you.  When you have moved twelve times, you learn to shapeshift. Your roots grow shallow from necessity, lifted again and again before they ever reach the deep water. With every move, something is left behind; friends, lovers, versions of yourself you’ll never meet again. You start to ask: Should I st...

Come on out to the annual Eldorado Arts and Crafts Association Studio tour in Eldorado of Santa Fe, NM. Visit over 100 artists studios during the weekend of September 19th 2025. Preview night is Friday September 19 where you can plan your weekend visits by seeing a smattering of work from all the artists participating. Sept 20-21 are the days you are welcome to visit and buy from the artists 10 am- 5 pm. Come see me at my studio 42 Balsa Rd Santa Fe, NM 87508. See you there!    

  Come party with the Las Damas of New Mexico June 14 6-9pm. June 14th One Night Only! Las Damas: Artists of New Mexico presents OPEN|Inside the Studios of New Mexico's Artists, a summer exhibition and sale celebrating the vibrant creativity of female artists across the state. Traditionally curated by invitation, this year's show marks Las Damas' first open call, welcoming a diverse array of artistic voices and fostering a spirit of connection and exchange within the creative community. Hosted at Muses Santa Fe, the exhibition offers a unique opportunity to experience the breadth of talent among New Mexico's female artists. All artworks are priced under $500, ensuring accessibility for collectors and encouraging meaningful exchanges within the artistic community. A portion of the proceeds will support future Las Damas programming, reinforcing the organization's commitment to nurturing and showcasing women's artistry throughout New Mexico.​ Event Details: Date: S...

What a surprise to find my " Butterfly Girl" in this months (April 2025) Greet Eldorado edition. 🤩🦋

"Another Birthday" 2024 Clay, Glazes Here is a link to the online article which was published in the February 28, 2025 real live physical newspaper Friday art section of The New Mexican :  https://www.santafenewmexican.com/pasatiempo/turner-carroll-gallery-turns-history-on-its-head-in-new-exhibition/article_a25205b8-ed6e-11ef-aab7-a34c880f2c57.html  Turner Carroll Gallery Turns History on its Head in New Exhibition santafenewmexican.com Nicole Merkens Art & Design www.nicolemerkens.com   Insta:  @artgirl253 Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/nicolemerkensart

  New Artwork is now updated on my website along with some new shows I am exhibiting in. Please take a look. www.nicolemerkens.com -peace out, Nik

 Hello! I am thrilled to announce I am in the Turner Carroll "The New City of Ladies" Art Exhibition on Canyon Road March 1-29, 2025. I am one of 33 women who will be exhibiting our work . Please come to the opening March 1, 2025 5-7pm. See you there.  Turner Carroll Gallery 725 Canyon Rd Santa Fe, NM

The Eldorado studio tour is just two weeks away!!! I'll be at studio #29. Sept 21-22 10am-5pm. The Preview Gallery is open Friday Sept 20 from 5-7pm. 1 Hacienda Loop Eldorado in Santa Fe  Nicole Merkens Art & Design www.nicolemerkens.com Insta:  @artgirl253 Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/nicolemerkensart

  Well I will be back in my art school hometown of Philadelphia ( or my work will be anyways ) April 11- June 2, 2024 at the The Clay Studio.  This is a fun show where the work has to fit in a 4" square clear box that hangs on the wall. It's a fan favorite and will not let you down. Please come out for the opening April 11 from 5-8pm. I will have one of my porcelain wood fired hearts hanging on the wall for all to see. The Clay Studio 1425 N American Street Philadelphia, PA 19122 215-925-3453 https://www.theclaystudio.org

Well I'm writing to you from the cutest little casita off of Canyon Road in Santa Fe, NM. We took a chance and followed a dream that's been in the works for 30+ years for me. It's time for adventure. I am now a Southwest girl ; make that a southwest cowgirl! Please follow along to see what this life path has in store . I'm super excited and very grateful to be here.  Misspelt from my iPhone Nicole Merkens Art & Design www.nicolemerkens.com 404-667-3162 Insta:  @artgirl253 Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/nicolemerkensart

I am thrilled to have been accepted into the Savannah Clay Community SIP "A Ceramic Cup Show" again this year.

I am thrilled with this fun glaze experiment. My salads will be so pretty.

  I call my latest body of work, “Star People, the Sky as Witness”. (Consider this as an intergallatic introduction of sorts). The sky has always played a powerful constant in my life and she is always watching as the universe whispers it's desires. I was born on an airbase during Pisces Rising, an Aries Sun and a Scorpio Moon. I come from a family of stargazers with an alien abductee mother, who is called “Starseed" by every psychic she meets and a sailor father who consults the stars with the tide as his first mate. He drove us to Cape Canaveral when I was 11 to see the Challenger lift off. We camped in the backyard for my sweet 16 to party with Halleys Comet. My Art school Final critiques took place during an eclipse and my teachers said they wouldn't expect anything less. My sister and I observed our small existence in the Grand Canyon as we star-bathed under the glorious milk way.  My children and I get up in the middle of the night and stand in the driveway to “ooh a...