Nicole Korbe is a self-taught artist from the American Southwest. Growing up in the high desert of northwest New Mexico seeded an early reverence for land, atmosphere, and the natural world. Although she always possessed a strong creative instinct, she pursued science academically and went on to spend two decades in the corporate world before returning to her creative center. Eventually the pull toward painting became undeniable — a second act, a reclamation, a rescue. Korbe’s work is informed by the landscapes she has lived in, moved through, and imagined — both urban and wild — often emerging through impressionistic and abstract vocabularies. She typically works without direct reference, allowing imagery to surface intuitively through layered additive and subtractive mark making. Nicole has lived in the Denver area since 2000. In 2021 she founded NKollectiv Gallery to create space for local artists to show their work. In 2024 she launched EASEL in Downtown Englewood, Colorado — a hybrid artist studio hub, classroom and event space, and the current home of NKollectiv. “I came to painting later in life — it felt like a second chance, and I decided to say yes. My work is built from layers of memory, atmosphere, and sense of place — an imprint of being.”