STATEMENT
My work starts with an ongoing curiosity for natural, earthen material: flax, hemp, clay, earth pigments. Each one insists on its own logic. I'm drawn to the tension between rigid and organic form, between what I can shape intentionally and what the material decides once heat, moisture, or time take over.
Landscape shows up again and again in the work, not as a literal image but as a way of thinking. A topographical map compresses movement and elevation into contour lines, and that idea, how surface can hold layers of time and erosion, shapes how I build form.
I don't treat imperfection or impermanence as flaws to smooth out. They're evidence of process, a record of the hands and material that made the piece. Each sculpture comes out of a kind of negotiation. I set the terms. The material gets the final say. What's left has its own breath, unrepeatable, specific to the moment it was made.
BIO
Nicole Neu (b. 1988) is a sculptor based in Portland, Oregon. She holds a BA in Photography and Sculpture from Azusa Pacific University and spent fifteen years in Los Angeles building a career in interior styling and prop work before turning her studio practice toward sculpture full-time. Her work is held in ongoing consignment with Merchant Modern and has been featured in Surface Magazine, Domino, and Oregon Home Magazine, among others. In addition to her fine art practice, Neu runs NIK NIK, a Portland-based studio offering interior styling services alongside small-batch ceramic wares for the home.
CV
NICOLE NEU
Sculptor
Portland, Oregon
Education
2010
BA, Studio Art (Sculpture & Photography), Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, CA
Solo Exhibitions
2024
Artist in Residence, Croft House, Los Angeles, CA (May–September)
2023
Bending Forms, Makerspace, Portland, OR
Auxiliary Routes, Old Pal, Portland, OR
Group Exhibitions
2026
Wild Echoes, Desert Design Week, Scottsdale, AZ
Galerie Town Showcase, Desert Design Week, Scottsdale, AZ
2025
The Open House, Modern Homes Collective, Portland, OR (featured in Surface Magazine)
Desert Design Week, Scottsdale, AZ (Spring & Fall)
2024
Desert Design Week, Scottsdale, AZ
2023
L.A.ND, Neuehouse, Los Angeles, CA
West Coast Craft, San Francisco, CA
2019
LA Design Week, Los Angeles, CA
West Coast Craft, Los Angeles, CA
Representation
Ruth Price, Scottsdale, Arizona
Consignment
Merchant Modern, Los Angeles
Collaborations
2025
Capsule collection, Shop Wilma
Press
Surface Magazine, Domino Magazine, Oregon Home Magazine
Selected Placements
Parachute Home, Armadillo & Co, Heather Taylor Home, Bright Designlab, Ann Sacks, Maiden Home