Nikki Kesterson: Prints

Nikki Kesterson: Prints

May 9 – July 2, 2026

Swirling color forms and textured imprints dance side by side, appearing like floral overgrowth and chromatic condensation. These descriptions do not refer to newly discovered natural phenomena, but rather to the monoprints of Nikki Kesterson (b. 1980), an artist who has been making work at the Tierra del Sol studios since 2014. This series of monoprints, each created in 2025, reveals an even more experimental and expressionistic side of Kesterson’s practice.

Over the years, Kesterson has developed an expressive, kinetic yet methodical style, with tilting and curling forms created through rhythmic marks. Monoprints, by contrast, are encounters with chance: while the surface can be carefully prepared with paint and texture, once the sheet is applied on top the resulting print is one of a kind. The transfer is never entirely exact, and it can only be done once. The unexpected therefore becomes an essential part of the process.

While Kesterson’s earlier works on paper often included references to pop culture and figuration, these pieces move toward near-total abstraction, becoming a cavalcade of captivating marks, brushstrokes, and subdued yet complex color. With titles like Dots, Splat and Roll, Drizzle Paint, Abstract Roller, and the elemental Design, Kesterson’s monoprints stand as exemplars of abstract formalism. Yet traces of play remain: in Abstract Roller, rabbits and perhaps birds appear to emerge whimsically within a speckled field of acrylic. Mysterious, expressive, airy, and colorful, Kesterson’s work defies expectation. Nikki Kesterson: Prints is on view May 9 through July 2 at Tierra del Sol’s Annex Gallery and is her first solo exhibition.