Serena Nickson (b. 1997) is a New York-based figurative painter. Her work depicts femininity in moments that feel “in-between” —mid-gesture or mid-action—exploring the tension between girlhood and womanhood, often with subtle satirical undertones.

Nickson draws from the narrative and textural explorations of the French Post-Impressionists—particularly Pierre Bonnard and Paul Cezanne—as well as the psychologically charged motifs of 20th-century figurative painters such as Alice Neel and Balthus. While her work leans toward realism, Nickson emphasizes the hand behind the brush: brushstrokes deliberately loose or unfinished juxtapose a perfect curl of hair behind an ear, or the exact fold of a skirt. This contrast echoes the ideals of a polished surface within femininity that tend to reveal elements of emotional unraveling beneath.

Painting friends as her primary subjects, she imbues their female gaze with both familiarity and fiction. Nickson carefully curates sets, clothing, and even the exactness of a gesture or expression to shape the narrative she envisions. She derives influence from 1960s and 1970s attire and incorporates antique furniture, leaving the “era” of her painted scenes nostalgic and open to interpretation, echoing the timelessness of the girlhood-to-womanhood experience.

She has exhibited at Westbeth and in two Lux Feminae shows in New York, with several of her works held in both private and institutional collections, including The Green Family Art Foundation.

Nickson received her BFA from New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study, where she concentrated in The Female Body and Mind in Painting and Poetry.