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 Smith
This image represents the artist's intuitive self hold onto the awareness of the life cycle.
Featured Artworks
Her Energy
Inspired by the depiction of past and future in Kemetic philosphy along with the connection of energy forces within/without.
Dyptych, acrylic on canvas, 48x72, 2018
Portrait of the Madd Painter (Feminine)
The visual example of the artist's inuition. She's the quiet observer, subtle in her movements and actions.
Acrylic on canvas, 24x18, 2018
Mindset
Children who are exposed to violence are more likely to become volitale themselves.
Acrylic on canvas, 16x20, 2021
Portrait of the Madd Painter (Masculine)
The visual example of the artist's intuition by predating the pandemic. She played as the silent warrior and secret seed planter.
Mixed media on canvas, 24x18, 2019
The Goddess
Mother creation in all her glory.
Acrylic on canvas, 24x18, 2017
I Put that $#!* on Everything
A combination of taco tuesday, hip-hop cultlure, and radio commercials.
Mixed media on canvas, 30x40, 2017
Justis
A portrayal of justice that isn't totally blind yet is forced to look through the eye of power, MANkind, and privilege.
Acrylic on canvas, 24x18,
Hippolyta
Inspired by the character Hippolyta on the series "Lovecraft Country".
Acrylic on canvas, 24x18, 2021
Queen's Domination
Women conquerers are on the uprise and the image of this queen is a reminder of the preditor capabilities they too posess.
Movie: Queen of the Damned
Acrylic on canvas, 24x18, 2023
I Am
There is such a bold beauty in black women that exudes power and love simulatneously. In creating this piece, there was a sense of being. It wasn't about what she was doing but who she is being.
Mixed media on canvas, 48x36, 2015
Precious Black Roses
Expresses the mental trauma children exposed to gun violence endure.
Acrylic on canvas, 16x20, 2016
Queen of the Sea
Majestic are her flowing waters as she holds chaos and calm all in the wave of her hands.
Mixed Media on canvas, 40x30, 2016
The Seduction of Violence
It's easier to pull the trigger than it is to suffer the consequences.
Acrylic on canvas, 36x48, 2007