Nile Joi Livingston is an African American contemporary mixed medium and installation artist; born on June 17th, 1988. Nile and her younger sister of three years grew up in the University of Penn neighborhood of Philadelphia, PA, USA. Their mother; an educator and father; a drafts man and guitar player encouraged both of their children to try various forms of expression such as music, writing and dance as they grew up. Always drawing in notebooks and doodling in her spare time it wasn’t until attending the Creative and Performing Arts High School of Philadelphia that Nile found satisfaction through the visual arts. Livingston began creating art was a way of record events throughout her life and sharing her thoughts, similar to a public diary entry.
Art courses at the surrounding universities in downtown Philadelphia were completed including computer graphics, drawing, metal shop, and ceramics. Livingston involved herself in community organizations such as the Mural Arts Program and Curtain Call Creations. She became fascinated by how limitless mixed medium and found object art can be. After graduating in 2006 she attended Kutztown University; majoring in sculpture.
Livingston continues to reassemble common materials and observations from her everyday life to into obscurity. “Each person sees things differently in life but we still have a lot in common. I don’t want to underestimate someone’s ability to feel something. We can learn more about our selves by what we see in others so my goal with aesthetics is to reveal a perception that is both arcane and yet familiar to each unique viewer.” This intimate juxtaposition intends to offer the possibility for a wide range of stories, emotions and walks of life to come together. Most of her installations are expressionistic with emphasis on the human figure. The visual ideas and self expressions from artists Egon Schiele, Frida Kahlo and Robert Mapplethorpe have been major influences on her work.
“try to discover what it is you most dislike in others, what you most often criticize and condemn them for. A little elementary self-analysis may reveal that those qualities are hidden in the depths of your own mind and that in criticizing others in this way you are, in fact, unconsciously criticizing yourself.” -Bikshu Sangharakshita