The Artist & Her Story

She Survived the Storm.
Now the World Is Watching Her Bloom.

Nicole Martinelli didn't just reinvent herself as an artist — she invented an entirely new art form.

45+
Curatorially Selected
Gallery Exhibitions
4+
Countries Exhibited
1 Additional Coming Soon
25+
Original Artworks
Exhibited
2026
Solo Exhibition
Manhattan, New York
Artist Nicole Martinelli headshot 2026
Nicole Martinelli  ·  Artist & Photographer
About the Artist

Nicole Martinelli

Nicole Martinelli is an internationally acclaimed, award-winning artist and photographer whose visionary work bridges traditional painting and digital innovation. With 45 international exhibitions, five major shows confirmed across Europe in 2026, a television debut, and works shown alongside Yoko Ono, Louise Bourgeois, and Yayoi Kusama — her moment has unmistakably arrived.

Her practice explores nature, transformation, and resilience — capturing fleeting moments of beauty through both her camera lens and her pioneering Hand-Painted E-Paintings. With over 30,000 photographs taken across beaches, botanical gardens, lakes, and mountains, she does not simply press a shutter. She preserves moments in time.

"Through both my artistic lens and my camera lens, I do not simply capture images — I capture moments in time. What many may pass by, I choose to preserve."

— Nicole Martinelli

Her recurring floral and natural motifs explore themes of transformation, healing, and the quiet resilience that connects the natural world to the human spirit.

Her Story

Born from Loss. Built from Strength.

Picture this: you've spent years building a life around painting. It is how you think, how you feel, how you make sense of the world. Then your health takes it away from you. Not a creative block — a genuine, physical inability to paint the way you once could. What do you do?

Most people would grieve it and move on. Nicole Martinelli did something far more remarkable. She invented a new way to paint entirely.

"As an E-Painter I am essentially incorporating my previous painting skills as an oil painter. I create my E-Paintings organically from my mind. I do not believe in being used by the technology — I believe in using it to my advantage."

— Nicole Martinelli

The Hand-Painted E-Painting was born from that crucible of loss and determination. Using a stylus as her brush and a touchscreen monitor as her canvas, she creates luminous, nature-inspired works that carry all the intuitive energy of traditional oil painting, merged seamlessly with the possibilities of the digital age. Galleries noticed immediately. Then collectors. Then the international art world.

Her husband Peter — who first recognised her photographic talent and has encouraged her every step of the way — is a constant presence in her story. So is her late grandmother, who first introduced her to fine art and painting. Her television debut on Women in Power will bring this full story to a national streaming audience for the first time.

"I survived very difficult life circumstances. But I came to understand that if I had the strength to survive everything I had endured, then I also had the strength to pursue my dreams and make them a reality. That same strength exists within all of us."

— Nicole Martinelli
The Work

Emotional Maps in Color

Picture this: you’ve spent years building a life around painting. It is how you think, how you feel, how you make sense of the world. Then your health takes it away from you. Not a creative block — a genuine, physical inability to paint the way you once could. What do you do?

Most people would grieve it and move on. Nicole Martinelli did something far more remarkable. She invented a new way to paint entirely.

The Hand-Painted E-Painting — Martinelli’s own pioneering medium — was born from that crucible of loss and determination. Using a stylus as her brush and a touchscreen monitor as her canvas, she creates luminous, nature-inspired works that carry all the intuitive energy of traditional oil painting, merged seamlessly with the possibilities of the digital age. Galleries noticed immediately. Then collectors. Then the international art world.

“As an E-Painter I am essentially incorporating my previous painting skills as an oil painter. I create my E-Paintings organically from my mind. I do not believe in being used by the technology — I believe in using it to my advantage.”

— Nicole Martinelli

To stand in front of a Nicole Martinelli work is to feel, immediately, that something is being offered to you. Her titles alone tell a story: In the Light of the Lilies. Petals of Resilience. A Darker Shade of Grey, Light on the Horizon. Requiem of the Flowers. These are not decorative choices — they are emotional maps. Her recurring floral and natural motifs explore themes of transformation, healing, and the quiet resilience that connects the natural world to the human spirit.

Her photography operates on the same frequency. With photographs taken across beaches, botanical gardens, lakes, mountains, and fields, Martinelli is not simply pressing a shutter — she is, in her own words, “encapsulating moments in time.” Waves crashing on shore. Branches reaching toward light. The small, fleeting, often overlooked evidence that beauty persists, even through our darkest life storms.

“Through both my artistic lens and my camera lens, I do not simply capture images. I capture moments in time. What many may pass by, I choose to preserve.”

— Nicole Martinelli

“Each piece offers comfort, peace, and a gentle escape from daily life — reflecting the same serenity I feel while creating.”

— Nicole Martinelli
Who Decides What’s Great Art?

A Remarkably Diverse Roster of Jurors

Part of what makes Martinelli’s story so compelling is who has been paying attention. Her work has been selected by jurors from fine art museums, rock legends, and Harvard curators — recognition that resonates across worlds.

Crista Dix
Executive Director & Curator
Griffin Museum of Photography
Susan Anderson
Curatorial Research Associate
Harvard Art Museums
Nancy Lim
Assistant Curator, Painting & Sculpture
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
Billy Corgan
Founder, The Smashing Pumpkins
Grammy Award–Winning Musician
What 2026 Looks Like

Five Major International Exhibitions

March 2026  ·  Lecce, Italy
Women's Generation 2026 — Primo Piano Gallery
Alongside Yoko Ono, Louise Bourgeois & Yayoi Kusama
March 2026  ·  Florence, Italy
Firenze Contemporary 2026 — VII Edition
Rossocinabro Gallery
May 2026  ·  Lecce, Italy
LecceArredo Art Fair & Expo
Puglia, Italy
Spring 2026  ·  Vienna, Austria
Bloom — Toolip Gallery
Upcoming Exhibition
Spring 2026  ·  Lecce, Italy
Natural Flow — MUST Museum
Upcoming Exhibition
Summer 2026  ·  New York, USA
Solo Exhibition — Artifact Gallery
Manhattan, New York  ·  Upcoming
View Full Exhibition History ›
Recognition Highlights  ·  2026

Who Has Been Paying Attention

MSN Magazine — Top 10 Trailblazing Women 2026
NYC Journal — Top 20 Inspirational Women 2026
Disruptors Magazine — Top 20 Inspirational Women
Women's Herald — Top 20 Inspirational Women
Women in Power — TV Debut on Amazon Prime
Griffin Museum of Photography
Harvard Art Museums
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
Juried by Billy Corgan — The Smashing Pumpkins
View All Press & Publications ›
In Her Own Words
"

Original art is music for your eyes.

— Nicole Martinelli  ·  Artist & Photographer
"

I hope to inspire others to realize that it's never too late to pursue your dreams. You hold the pen and the brush to your life's story — you are limitless.

— Nicole Martinelli  ·  Artist & Photographer
"

We all hold the power to bloom to our full potential.

— Nicole Martinelli  ·  Artist & Photographer  ·  nicolesgallery.art

"To every woman with a dream sitting quietly inside her — I see you. I was you. The world is waiting for what only you can create. You are limitless."

— Nicole Martinelli

"She survived the storm. Now the world is watching her bloom."

— Nicole Martinelli  ·  Artist & Photographer  ·  nicolesgallery.art