Rising Stars: Meet Nicola Wake of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicola Wake

Hi Nicola, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
How did I start? Hmmm, good question. I mean I’ve got creativity in my blood. I HAVE to create. It’s like an itch i get that doesn’t go away until I create. I probably create without knowing often sometimes too. I remember I started doing pattern work when I had a burning desire to draw but I had no idea what to draw. So, I just started drawing lines, and those lines paved a way to another line. I’d make a mistake and that become a filled in bit, then a line wouldn’t be straight enough, so id fill that bit on, and the artwork continued like that for a bit. I’d say it created itself and i was just the pen holder. But i hear you asking…Eggs! Why Eggs? So it goes like this….I had creativity in my blood right? So, I always create, but with that i didn’t really have any boundaries and as a result I did a bit of everything. Now that is also intrinsically part of me and my personality. I love to learn. I love to travel. I enjoy meeting people from all walks of life. I’m a YES kinda gal. You say adventure I’m there. I don’t need to know where we are going, I’m along for the ride. And my work is similar. Its the process that’s important to me. The explorations, the playfulness. I never really know where I’m going but ill follow the pathway and see where we end up. So, I was doing all kinds of art styles and mediums. Which was cool and fun but didn’t have really anything that joint them all together apart from me. Then one day I had a realization, or an epiphany to some. I had done some egg related stuff here or there in the midst of all my art but occasionally someone would send me an egg related thing on Instagram, and I suddenly thought to myself. Huh, eggs ey. People remember that I did some eggs. So then thought I would lean into that and use eggs as my boundary for my art. So, I can do whatever medium I want, whatever style but it has to involves eggs in some shape or form. Let me tell you, I get sent ALOT more egg related posts now hahah and I bloody LOVE it!

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Life isn’t smooth, and the struggles are part of our biggest growth. One of my struggles was knowing what to create, until I found eggs. Now I have so many ideas, but my new problem is how to do them all? Learning new skills such as sculpture, tufting, clay, etc. With every new idea there is a new skill to learn along with it. And then you have every artist’s struggle, money, space, time. There’s a constant juggle between that and your art. Always searching for the happy medium!

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am known for my eggs! I am an egg artist and the only one I know of. Other artists do some egg work, but no one just does eggs from what I’ve seen so far. Although id love a community of egg artist…imagine our collective! What sets me apart from others is I feel my joy and playfulness, it’s so apparent in the artwork, yet they all have deeper meanings. A little bit like me. Not everything is what you see. Your perspective is one, but we can all have own one. IM most proud of my dedication to myself and following my desire to create and learn for the satisfaction of being artist and through that sharing with others.

What does success mean to you?
Success is an inner feeling inside. It is not fame or fortune. It is knowing you are authentic and get joy from what you do, for no other reason than the fact it brings you something. For me its exploration, fun and expression.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.squifffy.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicolawake/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077868337287