'Speaking of Art': Amber Nicole

Amber Nicole is a mixed media visual artist in Atlanta whose work lifts up Black women and Black hairstyles in portraiture. She aims for a “classic” aesthetic, incorporating found objects like vinyl records and flowers into her compositions, and she likens the resulting impressions to the expressivity of Black hair itself.

“It makes a statement just like music, but it also has a delicate and graceful nature to it just like flowers,” said Nicole. Amber Nicole’s self-discovery as a true artist came about almost accidentally when she made her first canvas to liven up a recording studio space for a friend. “I got hit with so many people asking if I can make them a piece too, I thought, ‘Why not?'” recalled Nicole. Now, her work making large-scale augmented portraits occupies her full time.

She draws inspiration from music and fashion, in particular, always extending the possibilities of her materials. “For example, I saw a fashion show that used a lot of neon colors on their garments, so I decided, ‘What could that look like on a canvas?'” Amber Nicole’s work is available on Instagram at @am.nic and at https://ambernicole.studio.