Meet Meet Malu Nicolette | Glass artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Malu Nicolette and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Malu, why did you pursue a creative career?
I studied and worked all my life in the area of ​​software engineering but I always had a love for art and in my free time, apart from enjoying nature, I took some art classes in oil and watercolor painting, screen printing, and all kinds of mixed arts as well as crafts, like polymer clay, painting and renovating furniture, sewing, etc. Because of all the emotion that I felt for art, at the beginning of my retirement I decided to pursue my dream of being an artist and reflect all the joy art gives me when I make each piece.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
By bringing together the colors and forms of nature in Venezuela and Italy with those of the United States, both in the east and west, my art expresses the many facets of nature. The people who experience my work can see the colors of my life shining through the glass. Sometimes my work is true to the colors and forms of the landscape in front of me, and sometimes incorporates the colors and shapes within myself, reflecting my background.

The encouragement of my friends and husband helped me make the transition to working full-time as an independent artist. When people like my art and want to have it to appreciate in their homes, it gives me fuel to continue to develop as an artist. It took time to build my art business little by little, and it is still a work in progress. I have found glass to be the perfect medium to combine my two great passions, nature and art.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would take them to the Tucson Museum of Art and the Philabaum Glass Gallery, and on a walking tour of downtown, where we would experience the unique ambience of 4th Avenue and sample the unique restaurants. I would definitely show them Saguaro National Park, Mt. Lemmon, and San Xavier del Bac Mission. We would take a day trip to Sedona so visit the many small galleries there, and to see the amazing red rock landscape. Another day we would drive down to Tubac to see the local artists, and finally a trip to southern Arizona’s wine country around Sonoita.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Elen Zank, because she introduced me to fused glass art; Alysa Phiel, because as my artistic mentor she helped me push the boundaries of my art; and Mary Sherwood, because she saw more in me as an artist than I saw in myself, and inspired me to take my work to the next level.

Website: https://lnicolette.faso.com

Instagram: malunicolette

Facebook: elen-malu