Blowing up with Niki Bombshell

Completed commission for Rebecca Beatty in Springfield,IL

2011-11-14T19:51:00.000-08:00

"Uprising"Revisted - Final

Stripe detail

Lower detail

face detail

Just sent this Puppy out to Illinois, and received rave reviews on it. Looks like Niki Bombshell's work doesn't have to be limited to Philadelphia anymore!

I'm taking commissions of almost any kind, get at me, I want to paint things for you!

ask me about my commission rates :-)

Still trying to get this portrait a way I like....

2011-11-14T19:44:00.000-08:00

I added some more layers to try make some sense of this portrait I'm working on... I still hate it but I think If I keep trying I could hate it a lot less, portraiture is a good market to jump into...

the reference image is in my first attempt post right before this one.

ReAttempting portraiture

2011-10-20T21:26:00.001-07:00

New Old Work...Reintepretations of "Confrontation"

2011-10-20T21:16:00.000-07:00

Measurements and Prices by request

two new pieces...

2011-07-11T11:35:00.000-07:00

"Gemini" $75

"caught in between" $200

New and old work, rephotographed!

2011-06-18T19:42:00.000-07:00

"Brutal contentment" Detail $150

"Misscommunicate" Ink and acrylic on carved corkboard $300

"vacancy" acrylic on poster board $ 75

"down the tubes" acrylic on chalkboard $150

"creation of bombshell" ink and acrylic on wooden serving tray $100

"three" ink on wood panel $50

"untitled" on wood panel SOLD

"brutal contentment" charcoal and ink on paper glued to wood panel $150

"on a platter" ink and acrylic on wood panel $100

"demons on my left" ink and acrylic on panel $50

"i'll stay on this side" ink and acrylic on panel $50

"untitled" ink on tack board $75

"bombshell side one" ink on wood panel $100

"bombshell side two" ink on wood panel

"content" ink on canvas $50

"curious" ink on canvas $50

"secret" ink on cardboard $75

"...is a bitch" ink on wood panel $100

"skin and bones" ink on cardboard $100

"split 3 ways" ink on canvas $150

"girl talk" ink and acrylic on wood panel $450

Photo update:New work out on the town

2011-06-09T23:08:00.000-07:00

My Appologies, I have not titled these pieces yet...

Just to show you how popular I am.....

2011-04-12T15:31:00.000-07:00

Pieces that have sold.... Past work that has been adopted :-) ....

"Baby In the Corner(No one put me here)"

"Incognito"

"Oops,...I made a mess again"

"Heart So heavy (weight of the world"

"classy"

"Uprising"

"Misplaced"

"Confrontation"

"it's in the wind" Diptic

"home"

"tribal woman"

"social Martyr"

"try me"

SOLD

Finally! some new pieces!

2011-04-11T16:00:00.000-07:00

Kitty Approves of the new artwork... ha! ...

Ink and Acrylic on cardboard ----"there is a way out but I'll stay in the mess"

Ink and acrylic on cardboard--- "The demons will stay on my left"

I am going to be updating some better quality Photos of my past work soon enough.... so stay tuned!

New Artwork!!!

2010-10-27T12:58:00.000-07:00

1. "creation of bombshell" ink and acrylic on wooden serving tray
2."From the belly of the beast" ink and acrylic on thin wood panel
3."cut the cord" ink and acrylic on canvas panel
4."Girl talk:she said/she said" ink and acrylic on wood panel
5."untitled" acrylic on corkboard
6." stuck in my medicine" ink on canvas board
7."moving target" ink on canvas board

...

2010-07-23T22:02:00.001-07:00

Images of New work coming soon....

Some new work: taken in low resolution:

2010-05-10T17:22:00.000-07:00

aka : I don't have a digital camera and had to use my cell at First Friday:

"The social martyr(put out to make out)" ink on paper and cardboard

"The eviction Process" ink on styrofoam

"Have it on a platter" ink and acrylic on wood

"Where are you going?" ink and acrylic on chalkboard

"No toll,pass through" ink on cardboard -small

"It'll come,one day" ink on cardboard- small

Old work: Update

2010-03-28T11:48:00.000-07:00

Current work:Update

2010-03-03T23:06:00.000-08:00

"Baby in the corner(Nobody put me here)" ink on canvas board, small scale SOLD

"MissCommunicate" ink and acrylic carved and dripped into corkboard , 2'x3'

"Oops!" ink on paper, 17"x24" SOLD

"skin and bones" ink on paper and cardboard , 1 1/2' x 3' SOLD

"This heart so heavy(my back gave out)" ink and acrylic on plastic panels SOLD

"tribal woman(confrontation)" ink on paper, small scale SOLD

"uprising" acrylic on wood -SOLD

I have painted brand new work but do not have a camera at the moment. if you have one i can borrow, that'd be great, otherwise,enjoy my wonderfully distributed classics!

coming soon!

2010-02-10T00:10:00.000-08:00

Show ReCap for Salsita

2010-02-02T22:29:00.000-08:00

Despite the snow and the late start I would have to say that Kristin's show opening went very well also despite her absense. late starts always make me nervouse so you know I was a little stressed. But as people rolled in, that slowly melted away and at the end of the evening we even sold a few!

Salsita is turning into quite the little showing space. I really like the direction we are heading in. And I can't wait until we get into the other events we have planned.

They like us! They really like us!

Saturday Kristin Buroft with the soulful music of Jesse Ilnicki

2010-01-28T23:10:00.000-08:00

Relationships and Situations: Connect-Disconnect

2010-01-28T23:05:00.000-08:00

So I made this thing for art updates and to tack on images to my resume' for shows, but at the same time it's been sitting dusty for a bit because,sadly, when it comes to my own art, winter tends to be my slow season(although, I'd love to change that if anyone wants to commission me!).

but anyways, It's not like art hasn't been in my life. Its what I breathe. Even if it's curating and running art galleries. it's not my art but I still am spending my days neck deep in art and culture so, you know what? I'll take it. the majority of the beginning of 2010 has been seemingly fantastic. One volunteer gig gave me a paycheck(all be it a minascule one but still), My old boss gave me his entire gallery to run, I am in the process of finally having an art studio without the steep rent, and my unemployment got extended. Although I guess the fact that I am on that at all,is kind of more of a con in itself.

My life is so unbelievably hectic and i'm exhausted, but I think I finally have a chance to do something great. I have met people who trust and care about creating something amazing from well, sort of a sinking ship type situation. honestly, i'm not only happy...I'm honored!

So much is happening in such a short period of time that I'm having trouble keeping up with myself.This is just the beginning, I just hope this star doesn't fizzle. I'm really nervous about letting people down, there is a lot of weight on my shoulders right now. I'd like to reiterate that I don't feel negative about these things. I am happy with myself,my life, my friends that I've chosen to keep closest(who can also deal with my crazy ass!).

where are my negatives,you may ask? There are people in my life that I so strongly want to connect with but trying to is like screaming at a brick wall. I've had the realization that a real connection and understanding is just not going to happen.the thought of it brings me as close to tears as I can possibly get(sadly,I'm pretty sure my tear ducts dried up like 5 years ago).

It's true that you can't choose your family, obviously. But maybe at a certain age you could be given an option to switch some things around? I feel that this would prevent a lot of yelling and bad situations. Maybe even prevent some abuse situtions?perhaps? speaking of, I want to connect but instead I am being bullied. Honestly, I feel so hurt and strung up by all this lack of understanding that I think it borders on abuse. How do you feel about someone repeatedly calling you a jerk, a liar, a bitch, an alcoholic,and an all around bad person. an the cause is not just. It's like going to light your cigarette and having the convenience store you bought it from, blow up behind you after your first puff,maybe not even after. Sometimes you don't even make it to the puff! I'm the spark, she's the explosion. all are unjust and unecessary but you end up spending years trying to clean up the carnage anyways. the question is, no matter how close this person may be to you, when do you walk away from the fire? when do you decide that being the bigger person and collecting the ashes just isn't worth it anymore? and should I feel guilty for wanting to cut what is supposed to be a deep tie? honestly, i'm so sick of the mistreatment that I don't. I used to but my skin is now several layers of sandpaper. If i'm a selfish jerk,it's because you made me this way. The only thing my family ever truly taught me is that it's me against them. I hate that, I want a family that understands and with minimal screaming. I envy the closeness that some of my friends have.But I have accepted that I will never have that, the rest of my family got the denial gene, I didn't. with each fight I get more open and less scared of honesty, and less scared of disconnected-ness. I don't have self esteem issues,but talking to her is the only time I feel about myself. and it's not in the way you're thinking.

My friends are my family,they care and understand more than anyone related to me ever will.They are the ones that truly know all sides of me and for that I love you. and I know that friends run their course and if that happens then I will be sad, but it is a feeling that I can pinpoint and recognize. not a sense of angry and frustrated confusion without a real direction.in other words, its teasing, not bullying. sometimes we fight but I don't feel abused.

the saddest part is that I am hearing these awful insults so much that they may be affecting social self esteem. I'm realizing that I am a little lonely. let's face it, right now boys suck and the ones that don't are gay or taken or both(i know its cliche' but it's true!). my friends are starting to shack up and they are parting ways with me a little, it's the "I have a someone" natural progression. I get it. But what about that one that you fucked up because you were scared? what about the zack and kelly situation where you never like eachother at the same time until the very end of your show run(if you actually watched the college years then you know)? But what if everything is lining up except the social and you don't want to wait until the end of the last season? what does a bipolar,borderline alcoholic girl, with a disjointed angry family,and a budding new art career do about this fortunately unfortunate soul? let it eventually pass and continue the cycle? do a cute but crazy grand gesture? or just drink a lot of my own version of sodium penathal and drunkenly confess everything before I fall to the tile floor and pray to the porcelain god?

questions:

Do I : love you,hate you,keep you,you to my friend,take you from my friend,disown family members,move,do a cliche and overemotional art series,write more long blog posts that no one will read,paint my gallery a bright white, go with the photogrpher over the sculpter,analyze my relationships,drink more,drink less,get a new day job,or maybe I should try and teach my self to cry so I don't hold 30 tons of weight on my shoulders everyday?

suggestions?

much love- xoxo- Ms.Bombshell

Basics to Curating a small space

2009-12-20T17:36:00.001-08:00

When hanging your work,make sure you choose the order of your work carefully; make sure the sizes and color schemes of each piece coincide together in a certain harmony. Basically, Know your color wheel. Knowing your complimentary and Secondary colors will help you greatly in choosing which work should go next to each other. If your work is in black and white or sepia tones, you can skip this and go strictly by the sizes of the works themselves, and possibly the composition of the content.

Now, line up your choices and make sure the distance between two pieces on a wall next to each other are half the width of the piece itself in order not to pull attention from each piece of artwork. Over crowding a wall looks sloppy. This isn't a Walmart whole sale,This is an art showing. Presentation is everything, so keep it classy, don't overcrowd! A common mistake that many small cafes and spaces make in order to “fit more work in” is putting pieces on top of each other. If there is one thing that perturbs Ms. Bombshell more when going to a show,it's seeing work displayed this way ; NEVER DO THIS! In my eyes, there is almost nothing more sloppy looking than displaying work this way. I understand that your space is small, Spacing is difficult, but If you can avoid this, please do so, because it makes the work at the top difficult to see, as well as distracts. It takes away from the work itself by having pieces to close together. A solution to this is to first off, stick to small scale work.. Watercolorists tend to work small on a lot of occasions, tap into that resource!
A galleries walls should only be white or a muted gray. Having your walls any other color or series of colors will limit the type of work you can use in a space. For example: now due to too strong of a contrast, you can no longer use black and white or sepia toned photography(unless your walls are brown but then that's all you can use!). The reason for this is that the wall and the piece will be fighting for your eye's attention. The Contrasting elements will compete with each other and you will lose a lot of details in your work, The human eye simply won't pick them up! If your peepers can't grasp what they are looking at they will simply block it out. Your eyes won't register a lot of it. What's the point of looking at artwork if it isn't going to stay in your vision and memory?
If you are new at hanging work you should definitely have a level in your tool kit; and yes,you do indeed need a tool kit. It should include (of course) a level, a hammer, lots of nails, screws, thumb tacks, a drill, a tape measure, a marking pen, and extra hanging wire. If you are experienced at this then, eventually you won't need the level or the tape measure. You'll get pretty good at being able to eyeball it, I can almost guarantee that after hanging 5 or 6 shows you should be able to take the measuring tools out of your kit. If not, then you can find me and yell at me for lying. I'm bad at math and wear glasses and I can do it with ease now, So 5 or 6 for you could even be too many! Good eyes or bad eyes measuring without a ruler is something you can master quickly.
The rest is relatively basic, choose, line up, install, enjoy! At this point(and a little practice) you should be able to seamlessly install your or your artists' show. So Happy hanging, and much luck from Ms. Bombshell!

CALL FOR ARTISTS

2009-11-16T18:23:00.001-08:00

If you either a visual artist or a DJ (maybe both?) please contact me ASAP! nikibombshell@gmail.com

Older work for the kiddies... :-)

2009-11-14T16:25:00.000-08:00

Artwork RePost

2009-11-04T21:43:00.000-08:00

I'll be there! Come meet me!

2009-11-02T12:20:00.001-08:00

DJ DEEJAY PRESENTS...
"MMP!"

MADONNA
MICHAEL JACKSON PRINCE DANCE PARTY!

NO COVER!!!!

LE POISSON ROUGE 158 BLEEKER STREET IN MANHATTAN

10PM-4AM

GUEST DJ MISS GUY

ALSO APPEARING, THE THRILL THE WORLD NYC DANCERS!!!
AND, THE MOST AWESOME MJ IMPERSONATOR EVER!!!!

BE THERE!!!!

Keep tabs on Salsta

2009-11-02T10:01:00.000-08:00

Art and dance related...

We have it here... Keep track of Us!

www.salsitadancestudio.com

follow me on www.Twitter.com for updates as well :NikiBombshell

This Sunday! Check us out!

2009-11-02T09:59:00.000-08:00

The Salsita Studio Series, featuring emerging and contemporary artists of all genres, continues November 8 at 5:30 PM with a showcase of illustrations by Michele Burke. Salsita is located at 1624 South Street in Philadelphia, PA. --

PHILADELPHIA, October 22, 2009 -- The works of award-winning illustrator Michele Burke are the focus of the second showing in the Salsita Studio Series on Sunday, November 8 at 5:30 PM. The series, sponsored by artist and curator Niki Bombshell and advertising and marketing firm CrowdConnect Group, is a year-long showcase highlighting emerging artists at Salsita Studio in Philadelphia.

Burke, a 2005 graduate of the University of the Arts, will be on hand to answer questions about her work, which centers on highly personal portraits, each becoming a study of character. "Each person has a story," Burke explains, "and my art is a celebration of the many characters that inhabit my life - and yours."

Burke will also feature her custom-made holiday cards, with a portion of each purchase benefiting the Philadelphia chapter of Variety, the Children's Charity.

"We're delighted to sponsor this series and bring to light the wonderful illustrations of Michele Burke," said Patrick Diogenia, Founding Partner of CrowdConnect Group. "Art, in all its forms, is a vital component of the human experience, and it's especially important to encourage the development of new art during an economic downturn such as the one we're experiencing now."

Ms. Burke's showing is additionally made possible by a grant from Ameriprise Financial.

The event takes place Sunday, November 8 at Salsita Studio, 1624 South Street in Philadelphia, from 5:30 to 9:30 PM. Music will be provided by DJ Soil on Down and catering by Kebab House, Philadelphia.

Burke's work will remain on display at the studio until December 9 and will be available for private showings, by appointment only.

The next show in the series will feature the work of Don Hughes along with a live painting by Mikey Madnez and will open on Saturday, December 12.

For additional information, please call 609-945-2345 or email salsitaseries@crowdconnect

.com.

************

ABOUT MICHELE BURKE

Portrait artist and illustrator Michele Burke produces character-driven work that expands our perception of the world and the people around us. Ms. Burke's work has been featured in magazines such as Design NJ and in the advertising campaigns of prominent Philadelphia area businesses. Ms. Burke also creates custom greeting cards and personal portraits by appointment. She is a 2005 graduate of the University of the Arts in Philadelphia.

To learn more about Michele's work, please contact the Office of Patrick Diogenia, CrowdConnect Group, 609-945-2345.

ABOUT SALSITA STUDIO

Salsita Studio is perhaps the only arts center to function as a dance studio by day and an art gallery by night. In addition to showcasing contemporary and emerging artists in the Salsita Studio Series, the studio, headed by University of Pennsylvania alumna Athena Aktipis, also offers both private and group instruction in yoga, hip hop, ballet, and, of course, salsa dancing.

Find more information at salsitastudio.com or by calling 267-687-6886.

ABOUT CROWDCONNECT GROUP

CrowdConnect Group, a marketing and advertising firm with its principal offices in Princeton, NJ, sets small-and-medium-sized retail, hospitality, media and entertainment businesses on a path to success through its innovative BrandWise program and by focusing senior talent on every client, not just the partners' favorites. At CrowdConnect, every client is a "favorite".

Their holistic approach, covering everything from marketing strategy and public relations to management consulting, operations, IT and corporate social responsibility, has achieved results for clients such as the City of Philadelphia, Knight Ridder (now McClatchy) and scores of independent businesses.

Visit crowdconnect.com and blog.crowdconnect.com for the latest marketing and advertising news and tips to help your business succeed in a stagnant economy.

Forward Thinking Statement

Portions of this press release may contain forward-looking statements regarding future events and undertakings of the Salsita Studio Series, its affiliates and sponsors. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from any future performance suggested in such statements. The Salsita Studio Series does not undertake any obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The Company urges you to consider all of these risks, uncertainties and other factors carefully in evaluating these forward-looking statements made in this release and not to place undue reliance on such statements. As a result of these and other matters, including changes in facts, assumptions not being realized or other circumstances, our actual results may differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements included in this release are made only as of the date of this release, and we undertake no obligation to update it to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

Do Not Go To Lady Love on South street.

2009-10-28T13:58:00.000-07:00

If you need naughty and or Halloween supplies, I would strongly suggest going somewhere else. The people who worked at this store were the rudest bunch of workers I have ever encountered. I was treated like a common criminal without any chance to explain myself.Let me explain, I was out and about doing my Costume shopping, I was two items away from completion. I found one item in errogenious(sp?)zone (who were very nice,by the way. So I proceed to exit the store and the alarm goes off. They had neglected to take the security device off. So i come back, they swipe it over the magnetic device to desensitize it and I go on my way. Next, I attempt to venture in to Lady Love because I was told it the place to go on South for Halloween supplies, and the alarm goes off. I offer my bag to check,and show them the item in question. Apparently they do not let you in the store AT ALL if you set the alarm off. So ok, I'm a little tiffed because they were a little short with me, but I tell them that I will go back to E-zone and have them fix it. So I do just that, and they peel the stickers in question of of the product(or so i thought). So I make one more attempt to enter Lady Love and i go off again. Again, holding said item in question in the air and appologizing. But I also did sound mad(I will admit because I had been in and out of the same store several times). The staff of young girls proceed to yell at me to leave and gaurd the door like I am carrying an AK-47 and ready to charge the place! I even tried to still ask for help and yell over to ask where I might find a zombie-like mask and they just started yelling "no" repeatedly. I understand that shoplifting is a problem on south street but being that extreme in a low scale store like that is just completely unnecessary. I felt so mistrested and so violated by the behavior of this establishment that I felt the need to blast it over the internet!

So If you can help it please do not go to this store( I found a better version of the items I needed at other NICER stores anyways).

Thanks for listening!
Ms.Bombshell

More artwork! I'll probably being doing these kinds of posts a lot. ha!

2009-10-26T18:00:00.000-07:00

Promo shots by Brian Michael

2009-10-26T17:47:00.001-07:00

I'm Just Rosie.

Michele Burke:November 8th

2009-10-25T22:31:00.000-07:00

Show us your Hollywood at Salsita studio!

2009-10-25T22:30:00.000-07:00

getting on the ball!

2009-10-25T22:18:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! I have decided that since it may be sometime before an official Nikibombshell.com actually happens I should use this as my outlet. So I have indeed decided,once and for all, to use this stinkin' thing!!! first things first: I am going to upload images of my artwork because let's face it, that's the whole point!