[On Tuesday, September 15th, FuegoMundo will unveil a new artist to be featured at the restaurant. You will be able to see some preliminary works featured beginning Tuesday, September 15th. Her name is Knikkolette Church, and her story is below. In this post are two of the paintings that will be represented in the showing. Enjoy!]

Bird of Paradise

Knikkolette Church has loved art, drawing, and painting since she was 9 years old.  Born in Seoul, South Korea as Joy Ann Chu, she was adopted by an American family and raised in a small rural southern town in Oklahoma where she was not exposed to her Korean culture until later in life.

Knikkolette began her formal training in the arts in her home town, Durant, Oklahoma, and continued her education in Dallas, Texas, and Jacksonville, Florida.  She chose the name Knikkolette after she graduated from college because she never felt her name quite suited her.  She is currently focusing her efforts on a few series of works – the one displayed at Fuego Mundo is the “Beauty in the Rain forest”.  Knikkolette has always had a love of rain forest animals and plants and painted a mural of these items in her son’s nursery in 1995 in the family home in Jacksonville, Florida.  Another series is titled “Footprints In Time” painting individuals who have made an impression in history, famous entertainers, politicians, inventors and religious figures.

Red-Eyed Tree Frog

Knikkolette deftly blurs the lines between Fauvism, Impressionism, and modern Pop Art. Whether she paints with clean lines and evocative color, or with a blending technique that adds depth to her work, these styles excite the senses and draws in the viewer with bright colors.  Her works are inspired by her interests whether it’s music, the environment or the interesting people she meets day-to-day.