Statement : 

 

My work transforms the visceral feelings of being in a Trans* body into a Queer mythos and cosmology. Working through abstraction’, the visual language of mark-making takes precedence and works metaphorically to express the particularity of my lived experience in a non-normative gender. The return to figuration utilizes narrative as a way to create my own doctrine. Loosely inspired, I then spin my own myths to reimagine a religion and culture where Trans* People are centered as Deities and G-d’s and Queerness is the norm.

 

Bio:

 

Nykoli Koslow is a visual artist working in the realm of painting, drawing, installation and VR. Fusing abstraction with figuration, Nykoli anchors the innate Trans* experience into a queer mythic cosmology. Personal experience, reinterpretations of familial cultural histories, mythology, religion, mysticism, and sci-fi spill into his re-imagined worlds.

 

Nykoli Koslow graduated from University of Milwaukee-Peck School of the Arts in 2013 with an emphasis in painting and drawing, minoring in English. Since graduating, Nykoli has exhibited in and around Milwaukee including Wilson Center, Emerging Artist Exhibition. Var Gallery's, 30x30x30 exhibition. KSE Gallery, Kay Knight Continuum. Translucent: A Transgender Empowerment Exhibition, Union Art Gallery. He was selected to participate in the 2017 MARN-Mentee program working under Jason S. Yi. Nykoli was commissioned to do a mural for Swanson Elementary in Brookfield WI, 2017 and was selected by Wallpapered City (sponsored by Trip Savvy New York) to create a mural for the NoMADmke Wauwatosa Mural Corridor in 2019. Nykoli was the Pfister Artist In Residence for the year 2021-2022. He has a solo show at The Gallery Space in Saint Kate, Milwaukee WI, 2022. 

 

Nykoli is currently based out of Milwaukee, WI