Nicholas Emery was born in the West Indies and grew up across the Caribbean, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and European regions. These formative years, shaped by varied cultures and landscapes, imbue his work with an enduring exploration of the human connection to land and the imprint we leave upon it.
Nicholas has consistently devoted himself to the medium of painting while also creating found object and barbed wire sculpture, and short film work. His artwork has been collected in the U.S. and Caribbean, and he has participated in solo and group exhibitions as well as artist residencies throughout his career. Nicholas holds an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts.
In 2005, Nicholas returned to Trinidad and Tobago, where he lived and worked for the next decade. He had three solo exhibitions there during that period: with Softbox Gallery, Glimpse and Urban Introspective, and at Medulla Gallery, Decay. He continues to have a relationship with Softbox Gallery and had his fourth solo exhibit in Trinidad in 2024, Magic Memory Place.
Nicholas maintained a studio in Globeville, north Denver, a former industrial slaughterhouse district, where he co-founded the artist collective bloc presents, co-curated large community events, and exhibited in GRACe Gallery. He relocated to Oklahoma City in 2025 where he continues to make work and is concurrently teaching foundation studio art at the University of Oklahoma, School of Visual Art.