Bio
Nicolette Reinsmith is an oil painter based in Eureka, California. A 2024 graduate of California College of the Arts in San Francisco, she earned her B.F.A. in painting and drawing. Her work is informed by her upbringing in rural northern California, where her personal experiences as a woman within the masculine dominated rural landscape shape the themes and narratives of her paintings. Reinsmith examines the complex intersections of American rural life, class distinctions, and gender roles, exploring how these forces influence both personal identity and the broader American cultural dynamic. Her work has been featured in exhibitions across San Francisco, San Rafael, and Eureka, California, and is a 2024 recipient of the Robert Ralls Memorial Scholarship. As Reinsmith continues to evolve her practice, she is expanding her exploration of rural America, traveling to different regions to document their unique culture and communities.
Statement
The stereotype of the rural experience within the American collective culture skews masculine. The gendered nature of rural labor industries sets the tone often for community and general characterhood of that space. Within my recent body of work I examine and challenge the stereotype of the "white trash" persona or “character” and their role in both rural area's and the United States' identity. My work is an autobiographical and observational expression in which color is used as a feminizing tool to see rural perspectives through the female gaze. While the imagery portrayed within this work is often the masculine body or the natural landscape, the color, texture, or tone is distinctly feminine. Using color to challenge and feminize the traditionally masculine narratives of rural and small-town America, I integrate and fuse the masculine and feminine to bridge the divide of gendered rurality and create community, joy, and even humor. Investigating the intersectionality of class, gender, and geographic locations, I question the positioning of rural, impoverished, working, and middle-class communities within America’s history, natural landscape, and overall identity or “character.”
I explore the idea of the “character,” being an individual, space, object, or symbol not conforming to typical expectations or norms. The unique nature or eccentric qualities of a “character” do not fit within a good/bad binary as context, personal beliefs, and relationships confront whether being a “character” is a favorable or unfavorable quality within a given space or community. I relate to my rural community and the “characters" within it through their experiences, stories, lives, homes, and objects, and find these connections and relationships to be integral to my personhood and identity as a woman.
CV
EDUCATION
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2024 BFA, Painting and Drawing, California College of the Arts, San Francisco, CA
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2021 College of the Redwoods, Eureka, CA
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AWARDS
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2025 Third Place HAC Members Exhibition
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2024 Robert Halls Memorial Scholarship
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
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2025 Redneck Chic, Tidal Gallery, Eureka, CA
Ain't No California Without You, Studio 424 Gallery, Eureka, CA
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2024 Humboldt Beginnings, Studio 424 Gallery, Eureka, CA​
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
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2025 North Coast Open Studios, Eureka, CA
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North Coast Open Studios Preview Art Show, Brenda Tuxford Gallery, Eureka, CA
2024 Humboldt Arts Council Member Exhibition, Morris Graves Museum of Art, Eureka, CA
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Fall 2024 Senior Exhibition, Deborah and Kenneth Novack Gallery, San Francisco, CA
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Showstopper, 2358MRKT Gallery, San Francisco, CA
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Reclaimed 2: Voices For Freedom, Brenda Tuxford Gallery, Eureka, CA
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Summer Dreaming, Art Works Downtown, San Rafael, CA
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Food Chain, The Drawing Room, San Francisco, CA
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Atomic Tangerine, California College of the Arts, San Francisco, CA
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Nature: Holding Space for Celebration and Grief, PLAySPACE Gallery, San Francisco, CA
Joy is Here, Brenda Tuxford Gallery, Eureka, CA
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We Just Wanna Be Somebody Someday, California College of the Arts, San Francisco, CA
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2023 Open Studios, California College of the Arts, San Francisco, CA
Halloween Exhibition, Redwood Art Association, Eureka, CA
Self-Portraits, California College of the Arts, San Francisco, CA
2021 2021 Juried Student Exhibition, College of the Redwoods, Eureka, CA
2018 Deviance in Art, Outer Space, Arcata, CA
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PUBLIC ART
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2024 Salesforce video art installation, Salesforce Tower Top, San Francisco, CA
CURATORIAL
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2024 Nature: Holding Space for Celebration and Grief, PLAySPACE Gallery, San Francisco, CA
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PUBLICATIONS
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2025 Redneck Chic: Exploring Rural Identity Through Art at Tidal Gallery, Redheaded Blackbelt
'What Life Was Like Here' Nicolette Reinsmith Paints Rural Humboldt Life, Louisa Rogers, The North Coast Journal
2024 The Art of ‘Summer Dreaming’, Isabella Cook, Pacific Sun
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RESIDENCIES
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2025 The Peter Bullough Foundation, Winchester, VA