Nik MEERGANS
Background
Nik was born in Sussex, England in 1966 to an English mother and German father. He was educated at Michael Hall Waldorf Steiner school in Forest Row where he was introduced to wood, copper, silver, wool, textiles and ceramics as part of the standard art and craft curriculum.
Drawn to working with clay, Nik then trained in ceramics at Medway College of Design where he specialised in salt-glazing. Among his tutors were renowned potters Peter Beard and Colin Pearson.
After several successful post-graduate exhibitions, Nik explored the world, visiting Europe, Mexico, Thailand and the USA, before settling in Germany where he established a business selling hand-carved art-nouveau relief tiles and mosaics.
Nik returned to his Sussex home in 2001 and started experimenting with new materials including resins and pewter, and worked in graphic design, model-making and architectural ceramics.
The move to Saint Georges, France in 2007 was an opportunity to realise a dream – of creating a home and workspace that reflect his love of experimentation and form a showcase for his artistic finishes.
Despite his continual search for something new, throughout his work there is always a hint of Nik’s enduring admiration of Jugendstil (German for ‘youth style’ or art nouveau).
Exhibition 2010
The Ete 2010 exhibition showcases Nik’s two very distinct approaches to his art. Multi-media sculptures such as Norman and Florence start with a very clear vision of the finished form. This is followed by a frenzy of gathering and experimenting with materials - old and new - until the sculpture resembles the picture in his mind. With this style, Nik is free to test new compounds and technologies and perhaps realise an object whose image has lived in his imagination for many years.
Nik’s second passion is pre-loved items – for example, horseshoes that have walked many miles or an old rusty axle that has helped a plough or tractor trundle up and down acres of fields. His approach to these sculptures is a complete contrast. He studies each piece and allows their second life to emerge organically as he starts to work with them.
After spending many days (and nights) working on each piece, Nik starts to feel an affinity with each new form – the English first name assigned to each sculpture reflects this familiarity and also reveals his love of the whimsical.
