Meet Nora McBride

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nora McBride.

Nora, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I actually grew up in Minnesota but moved out to Alamosa in 2006 to volunteer with AmeriCorps for a couple of years. When I was done with my service, I decided to go to the college in town to get a Masters in Printmaking. After graduating in 2011, I delivered pizza for a while before deciding to open up a small studio/gallery with a group of friends called the Cottonwood Syndicate. We were open for about a year and a half and had some awesome events with lots of art and live music. Unfortunately, we had to shut our doors because several of our members relocated, but it was a great experience!

After we moved out of the studio in 2014, I didn’t really have the space to continue working in the way that I’d been able to, so kind of out of necessity I started embroidering. I needed to find some way to express myself creatively that didn’t require a lot of space or equipment or use materials that could damage or stain any part of the tiny rental house I was living in, and embroidery was perfect for all of that. Up to this point, my two main media were painting and printmaking -primarily linocut because I could still make prints without a press- so deciding to try embroidery was probably one of the more lucky random decisions I’ve made. I’d done a tiny bit of cross stitching when I was a kid, and my mom did a lot of sewing and knitting, but embroidery was totally new to me. I totally fell in love with it, and it’s been one of my favorite ways to create ever since.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
There have definitely been some challenges. In 2015 I was diagnosed with breast cancer at 33. Luckily I caught it very early, largely in part to the expansion of Medicaid in Colorado. But as so many people in similar circumstances understand, it’s very frustrating because in order to keep one’s eligibility for insurance, you can only make a tiny bit of income. It puts me in the uncomfortable position of being terrified of being too successful for fear of losing my lifeline to medical care.

We’d love to hear more about your art.
I’ll use whatever medium works best to express an idea, but I’m predominantly drawn to painting, printmaking, and embroidery. I think the fact that I’ve been working mostly in obscurity has allowed me to really develop my own style and create a world for myself that I might not have been able to do if I were continuously working on more commercial projects.

I grew up on the Mississippi River, right across from the Ashlund Oil Refinery, and I’ve been using imagery related to that industry for a long time in my artwork. I really like the idea of kind of abstractly reclaiming the entire industrial and technological infrastructure around us and giving it alchemical or transmutational power. I’ve created these bio-digital virus protagonists -that somehow also have mermaid DNA- to oversee these re-engineered structures. Most of the work that I’m involved in making right now has to do with this concept.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
So many people have showed me so much love along the way! Shout out to everyone I’ve ever known, really. I’m particularly grateful to Annette Troncoso, a painter and teacher living and working in the valley. She was one of the first artists to take me under her wing when I moved to the SLV. She let me spend time in her studio, and encouraged me to continue my education. I feel really fortunate to have been a part of the group of talented and hardworking people that were attending and teaching at Adams State while I was there; Gene Schilling, Margaret Doell, Madison McCauley, Jenna Eaton, Marian Schlagbaum, Anthony Guntren, Henry Blount, James Fuller, and Abel Tilahun just to name a few. My friend and fellow Colorado artist, Lares Feliciano, has always been incredibly supportive. We were AmeriCorps volunteers together, as well as studio mates at the Cottonwood syndicate, and her big heart, and dedication to self-expression and social justice is continually inspiring. The Cottonwood Syndicate folks have all of my love; Jimmy and Emily Crane, Lares Feliciano, Bothe Kretsinger, Kendall McNeilsmith, and my partner, Matthew Capell, who is amazing and compassionate, and lets me be my weird self. Randy Pijoan and his wife Evy McLean, who are both remarkable artists and humans, have given me so many opportunities to grow as an artist, and have been so helpful in so many ways. Russell Geminden has been a great friend and collaborator. My parents have been instrumental. They have always unwaveringly encouraged me to pursue my creative interests. I’m so grateful to them.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noramcbride81/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NoraMcB/
• Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/NoraMcBride

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