Artist Q & A: Nicole Katsuras

In our brand new Artist Q & A, abstract artist Nicole Katsuras delves into the essence of her creative practice and the extraordinary skill of using paint to transform memories and emotions into something physically real. The artist's new solo exhibition, Wellspring, opens at Bau-Xi Vancouver on July 19 and runs through August 2, 2025.

Nicole Katsuras, Sun Jolt. Oil on canvas, 20 x 20 inches.

1. “Wellspring” evokes a powerful image of endless creative flow. How do you tap into this inner reservoir when you approach a blank canvas? Are there rituals or habits that help you stay connected to that flow?

To connect with that inner reservoir, I treat my studio like a job. Routine matters, carving out a consistent time to create - it trains your mind to expect the flow. It’s a hard balance to find; it can’t be forced, but you also have to be there to be ready when it does start to flow. Tapping into that creative flow when facing a blank canvas can feel like both a gift and a challenge. Abundance of flow is no easy feat. Creating habits is hard - being at the studio forces you to do things you might not necessarily feel like doing. But it is in those moments of essential tasks like gessoing canvases, mixing paint, making sketches and doodles, and looking at art books and magazines that the creative ideas start to trickle in, shifting your energy without overthinking the creative flow.

Nicole Katsuras, Bard and Sage. Oil on canvas, 48 x 48 inches.

The key is to stay open, curious, and unafraid of “mistakes.” Like a wellspring, creativity flows best when you don’t dam it with doubt. I try to embrace the blank canvas not as an empty void, but as a space brimming with possibility - like a well waiting to overflow. Some days the inner reservoir is full and overflowing, and I even bank more ideas than I am ready to use for a series; other days, the creative tap is turned off or just dripping. However, those unexpected dry days are when I can sometimes have the most success on a canvas- be it with a new colour combination, pictorial format, or paint stroke/gesture.

Nicole Katsuras, Agnar. Oil on canvas, 42 x 42 inches.


2. You speak about filtering memories and everyday emotions into physical, lyrical forms. How do you know when a painting has successfully made that emotional transformation, and how did your colour palette for this new collection help?

To be able to paint for a living is a very rewarding job. Painting and life’s rollercoaster share a thrilling, unpredictable rhythm: both start with a blank canvas or an uncertain track, daunting yet full of potential. With painting, you mix colours, take risks with bold strokes, and sometimes mess up, which leads to layering over mistakes, which creates richness and depth. Life’s the same: you make choices and face unexpected twists that can lead you to mess up yet also arrive at new and positive outcomes. Sometimes you know when to stop, and other times not so. But that’s what keeps it exciting and interesting.

A happy accident in art, like a serendipitous moment in life, can transform the whole picture. And, just as a painting evolves through patience and perspective, the pangs of life - love, grief, triumphs - loop and blend into my work. Many of the new colours - deep aubergines or violets, and raspberry - are bold, new colour combinations that I wanted to try. They are a potent duo, full of emotional weight and warmth. Aubergine, with its rich, velvety purple, pulls you into a contemplative, almost mysterious depth - think twilight skies or a quiet introspection. Raspberry, vibrant and tart, injects energy and passion, like a burst of joy or a fleeting blush of excitement. Together, they create a dynamic tension: restraint meets bold vitality.

Nicole Katsuras, Coral Constellation. Oil on canvas, 14 x 16 inches.


3. The extruded paint technique you use creates striking, intricate surfaces. What first drew you to this method, and how has it evolved over time in your practice?

In my early work (2005-2010), I came to describe my extruded method as “bold yet intricate", involving pushing, pulling, and extruding paint to create thick, impastoed surfaces that vibrate with energy, resembling landscapes or floating worlds. My paintings emphasized the materiality over traditional brushwork. This labor-intensive process resulted in dynamic compositions filled with spirals, blobs, and swirls, evoking everything from islands in rough seas to cities on hillsides. The use of saturated colours, like banana yellows, neon oranges, and cobalt blues, alongside warmer hues, amplified the emotional intensity, aligning with the “rollercoaster of life” metaphor—capturing both chaotic energy and playful elegance.

My early technique was heavily gestural, rooted in my stream-of-consciousness approach, and drew from Abstract Expressionism’s spontaneity and Ukiyo-e’s lyrical, floating forms. The extruded paint created tactile, almost sculptural surfaces, a fresh vocabulary in modern abstraction. This period, which followed my MFA at Central Saint Martins, saw me experimenting with how paint could transcend the canvas’s flat plane, creating depth and movement that mirrored life’s unpredictable highs and lows.


Nicole Katsuras, Wellspring. Oil on canvas, 48 x 48 inches.

As my career progressed, my work retained these qualities, but my technique evolved to incorporate bolder compositional and chromatic ideas, as seen in works like Wellspring (48 x 48 inches) and Sun Jolt (20 x 20 inches).  My paintings have become more structured, yet retain their intuitive, emotion-filled quality. My extruded paint application has grown more deliberate, with tendrils of oil paint forming pathways that interconnect abstract forms like mountains, pools, and flora, evoking landscapes. As an artist, I find that technique and vision are always a work in progress, but the essence of intention remains steadfast.

The artist at her Toronto studio.