About the artist

Hi, I'm Nicola McLean, an artist from the north of Ireland, currently living in the far north of Scotland with two westies, two rescue rats and one husband.

​Inspiration for my paintings comes mostly from the animals we share the planet with, as well as the wonders of Earth herself. However, I can just as easily find inspiration in the ordinary everyday objects and urban landscapes with which we surround ourselves. Whatever my subject, I will always aim to re-imagine it with a vibrant palette and a vivid imagination.

I work predominantly in acrylics because they dry quickly and give me the vibrancy that I love. I’ve found that regardless of the subject matter I am quite often drawn to include a little whimsy or an element of surrealism in my work using as colourful a palette as possible.

As well as selling online and taking commissions, I also take part in local exhibitions regularly and have paintings hanging in private collections all over the UK as well as in America, Canada, Australia, China and Europe. I have recently become a Skillshare teacher where I upload video classes on all sorts of different artistic projects which anyone can watch and join in to create art of their own. 

As a member of The Art of Compassion Project, a collective of artists from around the world who donate images of our art to raise awareness and funds for animal welfare and vegan charities, I am very proud to be a featured artist in a beautiful coffee table art book called the Art of Compassion which contains the work of over 80 artists, with all proceeds going to Veganuary, an organisation dedicated to changing public attitudes towards a vegan lifestyle and helping to make the transition to veganism as easy and enjoyable as possible.

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