Nikki Woods was born in Cleveland, OH in 1990, and she received a BFA in painting from the Cleveland Institute of Art (2012). Her lush and psychologically resonant paintings depict subjects ranging from Playboy bunnies to ghosts, mystical creatures, and porcelain tchotchkes. With confident brushwork and an exuberant color palette, Woods deftly negotiates pop culture, art history, and mysticism to conjure a glimpse of another world.
Her paintings have been exhibited in three solo exhibitions at Hedge Gallery in Cleveland: Regrets Only (2017), Vivid Wild Things (2021) and Conjuring Images (2024). Her work has also been exhibited in numerous notable group exhibitions such as Curious Things, Survival Kit (2013), The Sunroom, Sunroom Project Space (2014), I Came So Far For Beauty, Cleveland State Gallery (2016), No More Tears, Survival Kit (2019), America’s Well Armed Militias, SPACES (2019), and The Regional (the Contemporary Art Center, Cincinnatti, OH and the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Kansas City, MO). Her work is represented in prominent collections such as the Putnam Collection, Metro Hospital Collection, Progressive Art Collection and the Cleveland Arts Association (CARTA). She currently lives and works in Cleveland, OH, where she is the director of exhibitions and galleries at the Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA). In her role at CIA, she curates special exhibition projects, manages internal exhibitions, and organizes a lecture series titled Lunch on Fridays, which invites visiting artists, designers, and arts workers from a range of fields and practices to share their work with the community. Her work is currently represented in Cleveland by Hedge Gallery.
Education
2012 BFA Painting Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH.
Gallery Representation
2015- Present Hedge Gallery, Cleveland, OH.
Select Exhibition Record
2025
New Year, New Work, Group Exhibition, Hedge Gallery, Cleveland, OH.
2024
Conjuring Images, Solo Exhibition, Hedge Gallery, Cleveland, OH.
2022
The Regional, Group Exhibition, The Kemper Museum, Kansas City, MO.
CAN Triennial, Group Exhibition, Various locations in Cleveland, OH.
2021
The Regional, Group Exhibition, Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH.
Vivid Wild Things, Solo Exhibition, Hedge Gallery, Cleveland.
Ghost Fields, Solo Exhibition, Deep Dive Projects, Cleveland.
2019
America’s Well Armed Militias, SPACES Gallery, Cleveland
No More Tears, Survival Kit Gallery, 78th Street Studios, Cleveland.
2018
CAN Triennial, Curated Group Exhibition, 78th Street Studios, Cleveland.
Hedge Represents, Hedge Gallery, Cleveland.
2017
Regrets Only, Solo Exhibition. Hedge Gallery, Cleveland.
Emergent. Heights Arts, Cleveland Heights, OH. Curated by Heights Arts board.
Palettes of the Senses. Hedge Gallery, Cleveland. Curated by Hilary Gent.
2016
This Magic Moment. The Cleveland Clinic. Cleveland.
I Came so Far for Beauty. Cleveland State Gallery. Cleveland, OH.
At the Table, Heights Arts, Cleveland Heights.
2015
Juntos, Beth K. Stocker Art Gallery, Elyria, OH.
Material Girls: Katy Richards and Nikki Woods, HEDGE Gallery, Cleveland.
2014
The Insistent Now, BAYarts, Bay Village, OH.
De Materia, Waterloo Arts, Cleveland.
The Sunroom Series, The Sunroom Project Space, Cleveland Heights.
Arranging Your Sentiments, Solo Exhibition, Popeye Gallery, Cleveland.
2013
No Holds Barred: 30 and Under, Juma Art Gallery, Shaker Heights, OH.
Curious Things, Survival Kit Gallery, Cleveland.
Special Projects
Artwork featured in the film The Charnel House. Release date November 4, 2016. Siegal Entertainment.
Select Bibliography
Utter, Douglas Max. “Enchantments: Nikki Woods at Hedge Gallery.” Collective Arts Network - CAN Journal, 28 July 2024, canjournal.org/enchantments-nikki-woods-at-hedge-gallery/.
Litt, Steven. “Cleveland Artist Nikki Woods Fills Hedge Gallery with Luscious Brushy Send Ups of
Femininity and Romance.” The Plain Dealer, 29 Aug. 2021, pp. D4–D4,
Sharp, Sarah Rose. “In Response to Rampant Mass Shootings, Artists Offer a Visceral Reality.” Hyperallergic, 20 Sept. 2019.
Clark, Joseph. “Joking the Unspeakable: No More Tears at Survival Kit.” CAN Journal, 2019
Schneider, Dott von. “Nikki Woods Explores High Style and False Impressions in 'Regrets Only'.” Cleveland Scene, Cleveland Scene, 18 Dec. 2017.
Utter, Douglas Max. “World Without End: ‘Regrets Only’, Nikki Woods at Hedge Gallery.” Collective
Arts Network, 22 Sept. 2017.
Her paintings have been exhibited in three solo exhibitions at Hedge Gallery in Cleveland: Regrets Only (2017), Vivid Wild Things (2021) and Conjuring Images (2024). Her work has also been exhibited in numerous notable group exhibitions such as Curious Things, Survival Kit (2013), The Sunroom, Sunroom Project Space (2014), I Came So Far For Beauty, Cleveland State Gallery (2016), No More Tears, Survival Kit (2019), America’s Well Armed Militias, SPACES (2019), and The Regional (the Contemporary Art Center, Cincinnatti, OH and the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Kansas City, MO). Her work is represented in prominent collections such as the Putnam Collection, Metro Hospital Collection, Progressive Art Collection and the Cleveland Arts Association (CARTA). She currently lives and works in Cleveland, OH, where she is the director of exhibitions and galleries at the Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA). In her role at CIA, she curates special exhibition projects, manages internal exhibitions, and organizes a lecture series titled Lunch on Fridays, which invites visiting artists, designers, and arts workers from a range of fields and practices to share their work with the community. Her work is currently represented in Cleveland by Hedge Gallery.
Education
2012 BFA Painting Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH.
Gallery Representation
2015- Present Hedge Gallery, Cleveland, OH.
Select Exhibition Record
2025
New Year, New Work, Group Exhibition, Hedge Gallery, Cleveland, OH.
2024
Conjuring Images, Solo Exhibition, Hedge Gallery, Cleveland, OH.
2022
The Regional, Group Exhibition, The Kemper Museum, Kansas City, MO.
CAN Triennial, Group Exhibition, Various locations in Cleveland, OH.
2021
The Regional, Group Exhibition, Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH.
Vivid Wild Things, Solo Exhibition, Hedge Gallery, Cleveland.
Ghost Fields, Solo Exhibition, Deep Dive Projects, Cleveland.
2019
America’s Well Armed Militias, SPACES Gallery, Cleveland
No More Tears, Survival Kit Gallery, 78th Street Studios, Cleveland.
2018
CAN Triennial, Curated Group Exhibition, 78th Street Studios, Cleveland.
Hedge Represents, Hedge Gallery, Cleveland.
2017
Regrets Only, Solo Exhibition. Hedge Gallery, Cleveland.
Emergent. Heights Arts, Cleveland Heights, OH. Curated by Heights Arts board.
Palettes of the Senses. Hedge Gallery, Cleveland. Curated by Hilary Gent.
2016
This Magic Moment. The Cleveland Clinic. Cleveland.
I Came so Far for Beauty. Cleveland State Gallery. Cleveland, OH.
At the Table, Heights Arts, Cleveland Heights.
2015
Juntos, Beth K. Stocker Art Gallery, Elyria, OH.
Material Girls: Katy Richards and Nikki Woods, HEDGE Gallery, Cleveland.
2014
The Insistent Now, BAYarts, Bay Village, OH.
De Materia, Waterloo Arts, Cleveland.
The Sunroom Series, The Sunroom Project Space, Cleveland Heights.
Arranging Your Sentiments, Solo Exhibition, Popeye Gallery, Cleveland.
2013
No Holds Barred: 30 and Under, Juma Art Gallery, Shaker Heights, OH.
Curious Things, Survival Kit Gallery, Cleveland.
Special Projects
Artwork featured in the film The Charnel House. Release date November 4, 2016. Siegal Entertainment.
Select Bibliography
Utter, Douglas Max. “Enchantments: Nikki Woods at Hedge Gallery.” Collective Arts Network - CAN Journal, 28 July 2024, canjournal.org/enchantments-nikki-woods-at-hedge-gallery/.
Litt, Steven. “Cleveland Artist Nikki Woods Fills Hedge Gallery with Luscious Brushy Send Ups of
Femininity and Romance.” The Plain Dealer, 29 Aug. 2021, pp. D4–D4,
Sharp, Sarah Rose. “In Response to Rampant Mass Shootings, Artists Offer a Visceral Reality.” Hyperallergic, 20 Sept. 2019.
Clark, Joseph. “Joking the Unspeakable: No More Tears at Survival Kit.” CAN Journal, 2019
Schneider, Dott von. “Nikki Woods Explores High Style and False Impressions in 'Regrets Only'.” Cleveland Scene, Cleveland Scene, 18 Dec. 2017.
Utter, Douglas Max. “World Without End: ‘Regrets Only’, Nikki Woods at Hedge Gallery.” Collective
Arts Network, 22 Sept. 2017.
