Kelsey Nimmo
Welcome. I’m so glad you found your way here. I invite you to settle in with some tea and a curiosity about what is deeper than our conscious awareness.
My art making was birthed from deep grief and loss. It began as a meditation - a path connecting me with my own intuitive wisdom that had long been quieted.
The process has stayed much the same as how it started, with only growing reverence for whatever emerges.
In the beginning, as mistakes appeared in pen on the page, my own judgement became loud and I was given endless opportunities to let go, find grace for myself, and move forward. It was a sacred ritual and release of cherished outcomes. Mistakes were never erased, only transformed into something more beautiful. As is life.
At its core, making art continues to be a practice in embracing loving kindness towards myself, those who have hurt me, and those I have hurt.
Most of my creations are often called whimsical and are largely based in watercolor and ink on watercolor paper, sometimes incorporating other mediums and materials: colored pencils, alcohol markers, acrylic paint, charcoal, tissue paper. At times they come to me rather quickly in only a few intense hours. At times they visit slowly, taking shape over many months or years. They are all experiments.
These whimsical and oftentimes odd creatures are not mine. I don’t create them in my mind and translate them onto paper. Instead I flow watercolor onto a blank page and sit patiently to see what happens - to see what is being called to exist in the emptiness. I invite and the beings arise.
Some of my art is more realistic. These are renditions, maybe more exact, maybe more representative, of our awe-inspiring neighbors on this planet. Bringing these kin to the page is a sacred and intimate ritual, crafted with many layers of paints and pencils to add depth, personality, and loveliness.
No matter the style of my art, I feel a deep intimacy with most of my art. I would love to invite you to find a closeness with them, also.
I invite you to see what arises in you as you experience them, just as I see what arises to bring them into existence. And I hope that they can do for you much of what they’ve done for me. May you learn that mistakes - even your most regrettable ones - can be viewed as something beautiful. May you find humor as often as possible in this playground of life. May you touch joy and gratitude even in the deepest of grief and heartache. May you create space to discover your own ways of connecting with something deeper within yourself… something that may not make any sense at all but carries boundless expansive love and respect for all beings.
While not painting, I am an avid non-fiction reader, aspiring writer, and Relationship Therapist and Coach specializing in sex, parenthood, and professional balance.
While painting, while not painting, and all moments in between, I am a mother of two - always in awe of these budding humans and their unique personhood. I am deeply grateful for their own perfect imperfections. They are my best teachers.
Please enjoy perusing this strange world. Find your own stories. Make your own meaning. And if you’re up for it, share with me what you discover about yourself through them. I would love to hear. We are all on this journey of discovery together.