Nikki McClure
A Forest, A Family, A Harbor, A Home
Wild Arts Festival welcomes the talented artist and author, Nikki McClure. As a cut-paper artist, Nikki emphasizes the natural world in her picture books and often sets stories near her Salish Sea home in Olympia, Washington. Her newest book, A Forest, A Family, A Harbor, A Home, has both stunning, intricate illustrations and beautiful prose, rooted in the nature and landscape of the Northwest, and threaded with the experiences of childhood and parenthood. In addition to a yearly calendar, Nikki has written Old Wood Boat, 1-2-3 Salish Sea, and the New York Times Best Illustrated Book of 2024 Something About the Sky. This non-fiction title pairs Nikki with one of the foremothers of the environmental movement, Rachel Carson, and represents several years of visual experimentation and archival sleuthing. Nikki used a special hand-tinted paper technique for this contemplative and stirring title. When Nikki isn’t writing or illustrating, she says that she spends her time, “swimming, sailing, and birdwatching...oh, and wondering what to make for dinner, too.”