Nick Black interviewed by Emily Aldene of PSG One

Your art is a lot about Hawaii. Were you born here?
I moved to Hawaii when I was one. My father was in the Army and my mother worked for the local paper writing articles about famous people who visited the islands. I lived in Washington D.C. and Thailand when I was young for a couple of years, but after that I haven’t known much different from Hawaii.

The ocean and the Hawaiian lifestyle seem to be the main influences in your art and life. Tell me about that.
When I was a young boy, I was lucky enough to spend time hanging out at the old wooden Outrigger Canoe Club in the heart of Waikiki. The legendary Duke Kahanamoku was still alive and well back then. My mother was usually interviewing people in one of the grand hotels, either the Royal Hawaiian or the Moana Surfrider. We would all go surfing on these gigantic red Outrigger surfboards that weighed a ton. Hawaii is just a very unique and special place, especially for those who love the ocean. Once you experience the waves underneath your feet and realize that the weather is always beautiful and the ocean is always free, you will never want to leave.

How did you first get interested in doing art?
I’ve always liked to draw. When I was young kid, I would be one of those students who would draw during school, usually on the desk during my studies.

When did you go from desk drawing to serious artist?
When I was a junior in high school, I took an art class. In those days I played a lot of sports and was happy to be getting by with B’s & C’s so the dean would always have an extra course for me to take to keep up my academics. But Art class was fun, it was like taking PE. Mr. Walden, the art teacher saw that I was motivated and so he got me into the art department. From there I decided to pursue art more seriously in college.

You have a Masters degree in Fine Art, so you must have done quite a bit of traditional studio work.
I believe that figure drawing is the basis for being able to draw well. Figure drawing from a live studio model allows me to practice my hand eye dexterity. And, drawing with other artists challenges me to draw well because if you draw any portion of the body wrong or not just right, everyone in the room knows it. Here are some of the figure drawings I did while at the University of Hawaii.

Have you ever done any one man art shows in fine art galleries?
As a matter of fact I’ve done quite a few in the past and will probably do more in the future.

Rough Water Swim- 1994
Frame Shack Gallery

These were a series of paintings and etchings depicting the Waikiki Roughwater Swim that draws swimmers from all over the world. The race starts at the beautiful Kai’mana Beach, home of the famous “Hau Tree Lanai.”

Monday Morning Manoa - 1997
Boom Gallery

“...Black’s work is essentially attractive and done with skillful draftsmanship. It is a shame Black’s ideas behind his work, a welcome inquiry into the kinds of social conflicts that local folks are loathe to discuss openly, are not readily apparent to the casual viewer.”

Review - Honolulu Advertiser Sunday, August 17, 1997
Deb Aoki

WaikikiBabylon- 1999
Boom Gallery at Indigo

“...These are not “pretty “ pictures. rather, they are richly realistic views of Waikiki. ....There is as much concrete as sand in Black’s vision of Waikiki, which, after all, is the reality of what Hawaii’s most famous beach has become.”

Review - Honolulu Advertiser Sunday,April 25, 1999
Virginia Wageman

Dead Reckoning- 2000
Gordon Biersch

This was a series of paintings and etchings of the voyages of double hull Hawaiian sailing canoes. The Polynesian Voyaging Society was established to keep the ancient navigation traditions of the Hawaiians for future generations to come.

Are you currently working on any projects?
Yes, I’m currently working on a block cut for the Hawaii Paddle Board Championships. It should be an exciting race, it runs about 10 miles from Hawaii Kai around Diamond Head and ends at Kai’mana Beach.