Nicole Antoinette Malcolm
How does one know when life’s journey to purpose begins? Like many, at first it wasn’t obvious to Nicole Malcolm, a.k.a. the Madd Painter, a name later inspired by an artist who instructed the painter to go home and create like ‘mad crazy’. Cloaked in darkness, death, and violence the community in which Nicole lived gave minimal exposure to the joys of day. Like a flower blooming to greet the sun’s glow, slowly the purpose had begun to reveal itself. The time spent in darkness and with dark dwellers allowed her eyes to adjust to the elements; yet she was not made to remain there. Darkness and light can both equally blind, and transitioning from one state to the other takes time to adjust. School versus the streets was an everyday battle for Nicole while she struggled to keep focus. Often she imagined if death was the only light she could see in the darkness, she would’ve willfully embraced it. She realized the only way of making it out alive was seeking something much grander than her struggle, her pain, and her emptiness. She asked it; it showed her. She sought it out; it spoke to her with such love and kindness. She knocked on its door; it greeted her as family. The peace reassured her through people, places, and things, even in the darkness it was/will always be with Nicole. Through everything she suffered, it showed her there was purpose in all things, even the discomforts. The magnetic force to become an artist had a much stronger pull than death itself.
During her years of attending Chicago State University she visited an Allen Stringfellow art exhibition. She walked around in amazement to his culturally themed pieces and popping red focal points. Her words had forsaken her when she entertained the idea of speaking with the artist, but the gallery owner, the same pull of attraction lured Nicole to her direction. As Nicole approached closer, she felt all things had aligned when she let go and trusted the process. On her two mile walk home, finally she recalled their conversation and heard herself request to volunteer. Nicole Smith, owner of the Nicole Gallery, had accepted Malcolm’s proposal for volunteer and later propositioned Malcolm for an employee position. Smith had given Malcolm a full escape from the traumas of her everyday life. The gallery gave Malcolm an opportunity to observe how the artwork’s energy had the ability to emotionally grab its viewer. One artist caught her entranced by his work and engaged her in such awe inspiring conversation (‘…and just go home and create like mad crazy!’), it ignited the flame to produce work from the vision Malcolm had within. The more Malcolm gave to her work, the more she fueled the fire to bring forward the Madd Painter.
In 2007, a year after graduating from Chicago State University with her BFA, an alarming number of youth in her surrounding neighborhood suffered tragically due to gun violence. The work the Madd Painter created during that time, upon exhibition, allowed a safe space for people who identified with those pieces to openly discuss their perspective. In one heart-felt discussion where a particular piece’s process was thoroughly dissected, the Madd Painter observed the unveiling of her purpose through an opportunity to expand on forgiveness. She could visibly see the weight lifted from the person’s shoulders. A week later via social media she discovered the same person had passed away. A lightening of clarity struck the Madd Painter when she realized the purpose of her work was deeper than aesthetics and sales. In 2017 she graduated from Adler School of Psychology with her master’s degree in counseling and art therapy which gave her more insight on the power of thoughts. The traumas Nicole experienced the Madd Painter had the ability to process into purposeful messages which inspired healing, hope and reflection. Through her journey the Madd Painter discovered her life’s purpose when the discernment and creativity given to her revealed how it had the ability to guide others to renewed life and consideration of their own purpose.
Profile image by: Tony SmithFeatured Artworks
- Her Energy Dyptych, acrylic on canvas, 48x72, 2018
- Portrait of the Madd Painter (Feminine) Acrylic on canvas, 24x18, 2018
- Mindset Acrylic on canvas, 16x20, 2021
- Portrait of the Madd Painter (Masculine) Mixed media on canvas, 24x18, 2019
- The Goddess Acrylic on canvas, 24x18, 2017
- I Put that $#!* on Everything Mixed media on canvas, 30x40, 2017
- Justis Acrylic on canvas, 24x18,
- Hippolyta Acrylic on canvas, 24x18, 2021
- Queen's Domination Movie: Queen of the Damned Acrylic on canvas, 24x18, 2023
- I Am Mixed media on canvas, 48x36, 2015
- Precious Black Roses Acrylic on canvas, 16x20, 2016
- Queen of the Sea Mixed Media on canvas, 40x30, 2016
- The Seduction of Violence Acrylic on canvas, 36x48, 2007