Nikolas Rainman

Nikolas was introduced to photography in his junior year in High School where he became the yearbook photographer. During those years, one of his teachers was very critical of his work. In his teaching style, he believed students had to learn to tolerate being poorly treated, thinking that is what they would have to endure the rest of their working years. On one occasion, the teacher told Nikolas the words that were pivotal in his career: "In this city, there are many good photographers, and you will never be in their circle." Nikolas took it as a challenge, and from that moment forward, he decided to become the best photographer in town.

Shortly after, he began photographing the historic district in his hometown, El Paso, Texas, as well as the most recognized landmarks of the region such as the Franklin Mountains. Inspired by New York City photographers, he broke with his hometown's stereotype of western-themed and Chicano artwork giving the city of El Paso a "big city look".

However, things were not easy for him at the beginning of his career as an artist. Galleries would not accept his work, claiming photography did not sell as other forms of artwork. Others doubted him for being so young, as he was competing against artists who had been in business for thirty to fifty years, while at that point, he had just graduated from high school. Other galleries did not take new or emerging artists, refusing to even look at his portfolio. He persevered until he finally found a gallery willing to take a chance on him. Since then, he has participated in multiple art exhibitions, and over the years, Nikolas has exhibited his work in the most prestigious galleries in the region. His work has also been published in a number of books, newspapers, and magazines.

As a photographer, his work can be recognized by his vision of turning the common, simple, and overlooked into exquisite fine art photography making everything he photographs surprisingly and beautifully unrecognizable.

Nikolas did not pursue watercolor painting until recent years during the pandemic. During the lockdowns of 2019 and 2020, unable to do street and people portrait photography, he decided to experiment with watercolors, as it is believed to be a difficult medium to master.

“It was indeed a difficult media to master,” he relates. “A global pandemic was something I never expected to experience in my lifetime. It was a very scary and difficult time, filled with anxiety and uncertainty.

I used watercolor painting to turn the situation into something positive. It became a beautiful journey.  Painting became my safe space. While I painted, I no longer thought of the world around me. My fear and uncertainty of what could happen subsided and turned into a more positive feeling. It did feel frustration, disappointment, and sometimes anger. But that was only because I lacked the technical skills to paint the way I saw things in my head. Eyes and hair were the most difficult to learn. Hair was the most of the two. It took me over a year to master it.

While photography always felt quite limiting, almost like swimming against the current a lot of the time, painting felt like finding freedom. It opened many doors for me, allowing me to get to know many supportive people, which I didn’t have as a photographer.”