We Could All Use a Super Hero

Nicole Charbonnet

I feel when I look at the work of Nicole Charbonnet that it is like peering into memories from the past.  Charbonnet’s paintings are built up through many layers over long periods of time.  In this way time is actually an element in her work.  Her work is familiar to me because it portrays bits of rural America I grew up in.

Charbonnet is a native of New Orleans where there is much layering of culture and identity as well as history.  She went on to study in Boston as well as the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.  Studying in France in Paris and Lacoste completed her education.

In her most recent series of paintings Charbonnet is working with images from popular culture.  There is a cowboy, and a desert highway, or a gangster.  Sometimes there is a couple embracing, or you see a rabbit running across the road.  Her color is always evocative and poetic.  Nicole Charbonnet’s use of paint and texture make for a lyrical vision that embraces and holds a rich and diverse subject matter.     Blogger:   Marsha Ralls