Posts by Nicole Hanusek

Paul Wasn’t Even Looking for Art — and Then He Commissioned a Painting What one collector’s experience taught me about how good this process can really feel. Paul Caso showed up at the Union Street Fair for music, food, and a few drinks with friends. He wasn’t necessarily looking for art. And then he arrived…

How do you feel about fantasy creatures? My love for mermaids started many, many years ago when I first saw the movie Splash. In the movie, a young mermaid saves a young boy from drowning. Then, later in life, the two of them reconnect again in the water. The mermaid is eventually able to live in…

Are you a sucker for a story? When I started doing research about creating and promoting my artwork, everything I came across said that art should tell a story. Most of the art I’ve made in the past was something I wanted to create for the heck of it, because I thought it might be…

Do you ever feel that you’re supposed to be doing something in a different way? Or have you been thinking that you’re not sure what you should be doing next? These are thoughts that I’ve been experiencing, and I seem to be at a crossroad of sorts. Last year, I participated in the SuperFine Art…

Can illustration be fine art? In college, I had a hard time deciding what my major would be. I was seriously going back and forth between illustration and fine art. In the end, I chose illustration because there seemed to be a more practical use for it, and there were also more potential job opportunities…

Have you ever gone to an event where an artist leads you through a “paint and sip”? If you haven’t done that before, I highly recommend it, because it can be a really fun and entertaining way to spend a few hours. When you sign up, you’ll get a full explanation from the host or…

Continuing on with the rainbow octopuses… Even though the first rainbow octopus is just for practice, I think it still looks really cool. The background is too light with the white gouache on top; there isn’t a lot of contrast. But I was pretty happy with the technique I used for the octopus skin texture; it…