Artist Profile: Lenné Nicklaus-Ball
By Megan Voeller for Tampa Bay Metro Magazine, June 2009
When artist Lenné Nicklaus-Ball lost her grandmother in 2004, she gained a source of artistic inspiration. Tapping into a vast collection of costume jewelry left behind by her grandmother, Peg Nunn — a St. Petersburg philanthropist with a flair for dressing stylishly — Nicklaus-Ball began to create vibrant, glitzy assemblages from the material. Starting with an ostrich egg (a symbol of rebirth suggested by South African art), she festooned each piece with pearls, gems, feathers and fur, sometimes creating pieces that resemble animals.
Both adults and children will delight in Wild Spirits, an exhibition at The Arts Center featuring Nicklaus-Ball and three other local sculptors whose playful creations explore human, animal and plant forms. For Nicklaus-Ball, the exhibit presented an opportunity to go big and bold with her glittery statements. Visitors to the exhibition will see the original, 14-inch tall versions of her giraffe and zebra sculptures as well as new versions that are 12-14-feet tall.
“They’re whimsical, and they’re fun,” said Nicklaus-Ball.
Nicklaus-Ball—a Pittsburgh native and life-long artist whose family owns the Sirata Beach Resort on St. Pete Beach—recently partnered with HSN to market giclée prints of her abstract paintings under the brand Art by Lenné. In the meantime, her sculptures travel to museums and arts centers around the Southeast, coaxing smiles from visitors wherever they go.
Wild Spirits @ The Morean Arts Center: June 12 – August 15, 2009
A group show in downtown St. Petersburg featuring four artists from the Tampa Bay area. The exhibit includes a wild selection of sculptures from Lenné Nicklaus-Ball, Candace Knapp, Felipe Packard and Ricardo de la Vega.
The Morean Arts Center is located at 719 Central Avenue in Saint Petersburg, Florida.