Nicole Bowller is a creative living & working on wurundjeri country.
Nicole is an artist, curator and designer who has exhibited since 2009. Her artistic practice, primarily in oils and gouache, explores her abiding interest in the complexity and contradiction of the human experience - one that is part of nature but often experienced as a deep dislocation and distance from nature.
Nicole has travelled widely completing residencies and self directed artistic travel where she developed a passion for working en-plein air capturing the essence of a place. Her first two solo exhibitions were drawn directly from her travels - ‘Abundantia’ (2009), inspired by a nine month odyssey across Europe and ‘Meta Incognita - Unknown Edge / Mysterious Land’ (2013), which featured the vast landscape of the Arctic Circle, part of a 10,000km road trip across Canada. Her work has been included in prizes and group exhibitions around Australia.
Alongside her artistic practice Nicole has worked as an independent curator and designer and in the museum sector in institutions such as Arts Centre Melbourne and Heide Museum of Modern Art.
SELECTED CV
2015
Masters of Art Curatorship - The University of Melbourne
2007
Bachelor of Architecture – The University of Sydney
2004
Bachelor of Design/Architecture, University of Sydney
solo exhibitions
2024
Avant Gardener, Exhibition and Artist’s Talk
Baldessin Studio, Nov 23- Dec 23rd
2014
Desert Studio, Pop-up Residency Exhibition
Watch This Space, ARI, Alice Springs, July 24th
2013
Meta Incognita (Unknown Edge / Mysterious Land), St Heliers St Gallery, Abbotsford, VIC, Aug 22 - Sept 15
2009
Abundantia
Fix8 Gallery, Manly, NSW, Sept 18 - Oct 11
group exhibitions /
residencies / AWARDS
2025
Artists in Residence - Stephanie Mortlock and Nicole Bowller, Exhibition and opening event, part of Melbourne Design Week at Baldessin Studio, May 24/25th
2024
Nillumbik Artists Open Studios, Baldessin Studio, Nov 23-24th
Slow Looking: The art of working from life, Group Exhibition, Montsalvat, Eltham, VIC, 16 October - 10 November
Incognito Art Show, Sydney, NSW, 13 - 14 July
St Andrews Festival Art Show, Wadumbuk Community Centre, St Andrews, VIC, 23 - March 20 April, 2024
2023
Self-guided residency
Wanaka, NZ, November, 2023
2016
Through the Eyes of the Printmaker, Group Exhibition
Braemar House and Gallery, Springwood, NSW
27 October - 11 December, 2016
2015
Art On The Spot, Sydney Road Brunswick Association, 10 October
2014
Squared, Group Exhibition
Watch This Space, ARI, Alice Springs
1 - 31st August
Advocate Art Award, Araluen Arts Centre, Alice Springs
Exhibiting Artist
July 25th - August 10th
Art Residency and Pop-up Solo Exhibition
Watch This Space, ARI, Alice Springs
June/July
Finalist, M Collection Award
Gallery Smith, South Melbourne
October
Finalist, A Year on the Wall
Union Dining Room, Richmond
2010
Stoneworks.LEAD
New works by Nicole Bowller & Max Royce-Hampton
OnStone, South Melbourne. March 16 - April 18
Linden Postcard Prize, exhibiting artist
Linden Centre for Contemporary Arts, St Kilda, VIC
Belle Arti Prize, exhibiting artist
Chapman and Bailey Gallery, Abbotsford, VIC
2009
Winner, Galley Club Award - Category Five
For publication - Abundantia - The Discovery of Abundance
Author, designer, photographer & artist
curatorial / design
Baldessin Studio (2014-2023 Board member), Arts Centre Melbourne (2015 - 2018 - Assistant Curator, Exhibition Designer (Australian Music Vault), Assistant Registrar, Collection Relocation Officer), Heide Museum of Modern Art (2012-2017 - Special Projects Assistant to Collection Manager, Curatorial Intern, Visitor Services Officer, Volunteer), Onstone (2010-2013 - Curator, store manager, visual merchandiser), Bergstrom Architects (2005-08 - Graduate Architect).
2025
Curator / guest curator for Baldessin Studio, Melbourne Art Print Fair: edition1, Linden New Art, 26 Acland Street, St Kilda, 7-9 February, 2025
Design / St Andrews Residence
2024
Judge / alongside fellow judges and curators Jade Bitar and Laura Jocic, Summer Small Works Show & Prize 2024, Caelene nee Glen Art Advisory & Gallery, Brighton
Curator / Slow Looking: The art of working from life, Group exhibition, Montsalvat, Eltham, VIC, 16 October - 10 November
Curator / Lloyd Godman Memorial Exhibition, Wadumbuk Community Centre, St Andrews, 17 January - 6 March 2024
2023
Design / Hurstbridge Residence
Graphic Design / Sacred Territory Diary, Brite Star Womancraft
2021
Design / Armidale Residence / Preston residence / North Carlton apartment
2020
Design / Northcote residence
2018
Exhibition Design / Internal case design and supervision of installation, Australian Music Vault, on-going exhibition, Arts Centre Melbourne
Curator / Hermia Boyd & Lola Montez: Designing an Australian gold rush musical, Arts Centre Melbourne, 20 January – 25 February
2017
Curator / High Hopes: in anticipation of the circus, 29 June – 15 August, Arts Centre Melbourne
Curator / An Interaction between Music and Painting, May 20 – June 25, Arts Centre Melbourne
2016
Curator / Baldessin & Friends Folio, launched at State Library Victoria
Curator / Poetic Discord - selected works from the Estate of George Baldessin, Australian Galleries, Melbourne 4 - 23 October
community
Board member, Baldessin Studio 2014 - 2023
Committee member, Nillumbik Art Museum Committee, 2024 - 2025
Volunteer couch, Lucca Leadership (International Youth Leadership Program), 2005 - 2009
Writing & publications
2024
Exhibition Essay / Mother Mother: Exploring relationships of mothers, daughters and sisters through images and words by visual artist Pam French and poet Leni Shilton, Newstead Arts Hub, Newstead, VIC, 5 - 27 October
2017
Exhibition Essay / Groundwork – uncovering identity in image and poetry, Pamela French and Leni Shilton, June 24 & 25th, 2017, Clifton School of Art, 338 Lawrence Hargrave Drive, Clifton, NSW
2016
Baldessin & Friends Folio catalogue, Editor/designer/contributing writer, The Baldessin Press & Studio
Poetic Discord - selected works from the Estate of George Baldessin catalogue
Author/designer
2009
Abundantia - The Discovery of Abundance
Author, photographer, artist and designer
ISBN 978-0-9804668-5-0
2007
Graduate Catalogue 2007 {esc}ape
Designer & co-editor
The Faculty of Architecture, Design and Planning
The University of Sydney
Disparallel Spaces - Exhibition Catalogue
Designer
The Faculty of Architecture, Design and Planning
The University of Sydney
ISBN 978-0-958122115