Nolan.Studio

Fray (no. 207)
2026
Acrylic wash on bleached denim harvested from jeans
41 h × 25 w × 13 d in

Jeans are our biographers. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Drop-off day, in the pouring rain.

Four works headed to three exhibitions across the DMV this week:

ChronoScapes at @delrayartisans
Opening reception: Friday, August 7, 7–9 pm

Cosmic
2024
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
13¾ × 11½ in

Threshold
2024
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
12½ × 14 in

All Members M–Z at @arlingtonartistsalliance
Opening reception: Thursday, August 6, 5–7 pm

Hirshhorn (No. 200)
2026
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
10½ × 9 in

Foundry Gallery at @foundrygallerydc
Opening reception: Saturday, August 8, 4–7 pm

Planet No. 11
2024
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
15.6 × 19.5 in

I also stopped by @theartleague to check on Gallery 75, and delivered earrings, studies, and cards to Del Ray Artisans and Foundry Gallery.

Jeans are our biographers. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

No. 152
Acrylic wash on bleached denim harvested from jeans 31 × 24 × 3 in

No. 92
Acrylic wash on bleached linen with evaporative crystalline deposits 30 × 24 × 5 in 
No. 202
Acrylic with acrylic wash on bleached denim harvested from jeans 37 × 23 × 4 in 
Each of these works began as panels hanging in my studio.

These are some of the panels in progress now. Some have found their color. Some are still waiting for it.

These are still looking for their hang.

Jeans are our biographers. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Coming to Falls Church Arts @fallschurcharts
Opening reception tomorrow (Sat) 7-9pm

National Mall Landmarks
Acrylic on canvas
8 x 10 in

Jeans are our biographers. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Coming to DC Arts Center @dcartscenter
Opening reception Friday 6-9pm

No. 201
Acrylic wash on bleached denim seams harvested from 16 pairs of jeans
22.5 x 22.75 x 10.5 in

Jeans are our biographers. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Coming to DC Arts Center @dcartscenter
Opening reception Friday 6-9pm

No. 201
Acrylic wash on bleached denim seams harvested from 16 pairs of jeans
22.5 x 22.75 x 10.5 in

Jeans are our biographers. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Coming to DC Arts Center @dcartscenter
Opening reception Friday 6-9pm

No. 201
Acrylic wash on bleached denim seams harvested from 16 pairs of jeans
22.5 x 22.75 x 10.5 in

Jeans are our biographers. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Coming to DC Arts Center @dcartscenter
Opening reception Friday 6-9pm

A Place for 12 Earrings
Acrylic wash on bleached denim harvested from jeans
10 x 14.5 in

Earrings by Nolan
Acrylic with acrylic wash on bleached denim harvested from jeans
approx. 1 x 1 in

National Museum of the American Indian
Acrylic on canvas
7 x 5 in

Smithsonian Castle
Acrylic on canvas
7 x 5 in

Hirshhorn
Acrylic on canvas
7 x 5 in

Jeans are our biographers. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Coming to DC Arts Center @dcartscenter
Opening reception Friday 6-9pm

A Place for 12 Earrings
Acrylic wash on bleached denim harvested from jeans
10 x 14.5 in

Earrings by Nolan
Acrylic with acrylic wash on bleached denim harvested from jeans
approx. 1 x 1 in

Jeans are our biographers. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Currently on view at Touchstone Gallery touchstone

Mosaic no. 3
Acrylic wash on bleached denim harvested from jeans on linen

No. 86
Acrylic wash with acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
40 x 30 x 5 in

On view at DCAC @dcartscenter in
Where It Lands: The Space Between
Curated by: Dr. Lauren Davidson @museum_nectar

Closing receptions: Tomorrow (Thurs, July 9th), 6-7pm

Micro Hibiscus (No. 11)
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans with denim remnants
8 x 9 in

On view at DCAC @dcartscenter in
Color Ensemble
Curated by: Tyryn Goodson-Seck @tyrynthecurator

Closing reception: Tomorrow (Thurs, July 9th), 6-7pm

Planet No. 31 (Ours)
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
16 x 17 in

On view at The Art League @theartleague, Torpedo Factory @torpedofactory

Opening receptions: Fri, July 10th, 6:30-8pm

Assorted earrings
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
Varied around approx 1 x 1 inch

Assorted greeting cards
Acrylic on paper
4 x 6 in

Del Ray Artisans @delrayartisans
Summer Art Market
Sun, July 12th, 10am-4pm

Jeans are our biographers. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Inspired to try something new.

Taking the Ocean series toward sculpture.

Jeans are our biographers. Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Seams harvested from nine pairs of jeans, hanging to dry.

They’ll become part of a new seams hanging piece.

Jeans are our biographers. Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

No. 195 gathers seams harvested from worn jeans and hangs them as a field of fray, wear, and memory.

No. 195
2026
Seams harvested from worn jeans
53 x 24 x 30 in

Jeans are our biographers. Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

No. 86 took almost a year to become itself.

It began as acrylic wash on loose denim panels. For months it sat unresolved. Eventually I built a frame for it, and the work started revealing what it wanted to be. Layer by layer, cast by cast, it grew into the piece that now hangs at DCAC @dcartscenter.

One thing I enjoy about working with reclaimed denim is that every piece begins in the middle of its story. These jeans had already been worn, frayed, and lived in long before they reached my studio. No. 86 is just one chapter in their much longer journey.

No. 86
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from worn jeans
40 × 30 × 3 in

Currently on view in Where It Lands: The Space Between @museum_nectar
DC Arts Center
12 June – 9 July

Jeans are our biographers. Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Planet No. 16 now on view at the DC Arts Center @dcartscenter

From one viewer at last night’s reception, Planet 16 doesn’t read as jeans at first. But one closer inspection the traces, of jeans, of a life lived before painting, are there.

In Where It Lands: The Space Between curated by Dr Lauren Davidson @museum_nectar

Thank you for including me and Planet 16

Planet No. 16
Acrylic on denim harvested from jeans
31 x 48 in
2025

Jeans are our biographers. Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Most of my work operates within the dimensions that a pair of jeans provides.

Those dimensions are ultimately shaped by the human body.

No. 139 is an experiment in working beyond that scale.

22 panels harvested from worn jeans.
4 × 7 ft.
Still in progress.

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday. Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

A selection of my work will be on view at Northside Social @northsidesocial this summer. Opening Reception this Friday, June 5th, 6–9pm.

Works from my Ocean and Tidepool series will be on view, these are created using reclaimed denim harvested from worn jeans. I’ll also have some of my framed studies of DMV landmarks.

You can preview the works, view pricing, and learn more here:

https://www.nolan.studio/northside-social

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday. -Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

I’ve been working on these two Ocean works at Coin des Poetes @coindespoetes in April and May.

Base layer, lyrical casts / ocean spray, and finally dry brushing. All at Coin des Poetes

Ocean no. 20
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
22.5 × 13.25 in

Ocean no. 21
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
27 × 14.25 in

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

No.92 took 15 months to finish.

It began as four linen panels that happened to get some acrylic wash. I hung them in my studio and became attached to the arrangement itself.

Later, I mounted them onto a frame and hated it.

After seeing Sam Gilliam’s work at NGA East, I realized the problem. I spent time devising how to let the work hang off the wall while still feeling the way it had hanging from a pipe in my studio.

No.92
2025–2026
Acrylic wash with wash and crystalline bleach deposits on linen harvested from worn pants

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting #materialbasedart

Working simultaneously on Forest no.13, Forest no.15, and Forest no.16.

Each began with its own under-painting and color atmosphere before the forest was painted over top. Even with the same gestures and painting session, they continue developing in different directions.

Forest no.13
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans

Forest no.15
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans

Forest no.16
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Sometimes a color combination inspires another painting, and then interrupts it.

I was in the middle of working on something else when this deep ivy green and rust-red-brown started pulling at me. So I stopped, pieced fresh denim onto a frame, and followed it instead.

No.184
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

I build all of my own frames and mount the denim directly onto them. I don’t stretch the bleached denim tightly, like a traditional canvas.

This lets the denim and acrylic continue to interact over time. The fabric can move, settle, and respond according to how it was previously worn and lived into.

The material remains active in the final work.

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

I’ve been working on studies a lot lately. A mix of canvas and denim.

Experimenting with denim remnants and fluff.
Acrylic and acrylic washes.

Color fields, DC landmarks, silhouettes, cherry blossoms.

Small works where ideas get tested, surfaces pushed, and materials explored.

Thanks to @cindykanephotography for the silhouette reference of the two girls jumping.

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
-Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

The first thing I paint in these Forest works is the sun.
Then I paint the forest over it,
to create that sense of sunlight coming through the trees.

Forest no.14
July 2025 – March 2026
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
47 x 23 in

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #abstractpainting

Jeans are our biographers.
Jeans witness history.
Tell me about your jeans…
@thedenimstoriesproject

Earth Day on Langston @earhdayonlamgston
Tomorrow (Sunday, April 26)
Come say hello, or leave a comment with your own jeans story.

These photographs trace moments of American life across decades where denim appears not as fashion, but as witness.

Images featured:

1. Lewis W. Hine, Bibb Mill No. 1, Macon, Georgia (1909), Library of Congress
2. Lewis W. Hine, A Greaser in a Coal Mine (1910), Library of Congress
3. Untitled (c. 1935–42), Library of Congress
4. Russell Lee, Railroad Gang, Texas (1939), Library of Congress
5. Russell Lee, Farmer Chopping Wood, New Mexico (1940), Library of Congress
6. Thomas J. O’Halloran, Clinton, TN School Integration Conflicts (1956), Library of Congress
7. A. Vente, Jimi Hendrix Performs for Hoepla (1967), Wikimedia Commons
8. Bernard Gotfryd, President Jimmy Carter, Press Coverage (c. 1977), Library of Congress
9. Bernard Gotfryd, Jimmy Carter, Plains, Georgia (c. 1977), Library of Congress

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
Nolan.Studio

#EarthDay #EarthDayOnLangston #DMVartist #denimart #MaterialLedAbstraction

Earth Day on Langston @earthdayonlangston
Sunday, April 26
11am–5 pm
Lee Heights Shops, Langston Blvd, Arlington @langstonblvdalliance

I’ll be there with new works, studies, cards, earrings, and a few joyful things.

I’m also bringing back Tell me about your jeans… and accepting donated jeans for future artworks and installations. Old pairs carry stories. I’d love to help begin their next chapter.

Featured in this post: Planet no.31, no.190, cherry blossom studies, monuments cards, cherry blossoms cards, earrings, and a little joy t-shirt.

Come say hello.

Planet no.31 (Ours)
March 2026
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans

no.190
April 2026
Acrylic wash on canvas with denim remnants harvested from jeans

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
Nolan.Studio

#EarthDay #DMVartist #denimart #contemporaryart #materialledabstraction

New Ocean and Tidepool works
coming to Spring Artful Weekend @arlingtonartistsalliance
Ft C.F. Smith Park
17–19 April

Opening reception Friday, 6-8pm

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart #denimstories

Two works from my Hibiscus series were invited to @dcartscenter DC Arts Center’s upcoming exhibit Color Ensemble. Opening reception Friday, 10 April, 7-9pm.

In this series, I take pockets from jeans and reimagine them as (hibiscus) flowers. Now when I look at the pockets on jeans, I can’t help but see flowers. Perhaps seeing flowers sprouting from jeans will spread to others.

Micro Hibiscus (no. 10)
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans with denim remnants
8 x 9 in

Micro Hibiscus (no. 9)
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans with denim remnants
8 x 8 in

Both will be on view 10 April - 9 July.

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday. — Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #abstractpainting #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart

Ocean #14
Acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans
15 x 20 in

My ocean series comes l from the inner seat of the jeans, where the fabric has been worn, stretched, lived in.

I follow what’s already there.
The waves always seemed to be there, living in the jeans. Waiting to be seen.

On view at Spring Artful Weekend @arlingtonartistalliamce
17–19 April

I’ll be working on this and others on Sundays in April at Coin des Poetes @coindespietes
As part of the AdMo art walk @dcartscenter @admobid

Come tell me about your jeans over coffee, crepes, or a smoothie.

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #materialledabstraction #contemporaryart

Install complete and up at Coin des Poètes @coindespoetes
for the AdMo Art Walk @dcartscenter @admobid

A small selection of paintings on denim harvested from jeans, alongside The Denim Stories Project™

Cozy French café + crêperie in Adams Morgan

Come tell me about your jeans while having a coffee, crêpes, or a smoothie

Opening reception + guided tour tomorrow
2 April, 6–8pm (starting at DCAC)
AdMo artwalk: 3-30 April

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday. — Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #abstractpainting #materialbasedart #contemporaryart

8 on view and upcoming exhibitions.

All works acrylic on bleached denim harvested from jeans.

Forest w/ Sun (No. 3)
32 x 18 in
Coin des Poetes @coindespoetes
3-30 April

Planet No. 5
18 x 20 in
The Art League, Torpedo Factory @theartleague @torpedofactory
11 March - 5 April

Liminal
24 x 14 in
Escapes, Alliance Gallery @arlingtonartistsalliance
26 Feb - 5 April

Planet No. 8
16 x 19 in
Hill Center @hillcenterdc
11 Jan - 2 May

Ocean No. 14
15 x 20 in
Spring Artful Weekend, Ft CF Smith Park
17-19 April

Forest No. 8
32 x 17 in
Earth Day on Langston Blvd @earthdayonlangston @langstonblvdalliance
26 April

Forest No. 2
25 x 25 in
Savor — The Art League, Torpedo Factory
8-28 April

Forest No. 4
20 x 19 in
Green — Cade Gallery
28 April - 14 July

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday. — Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #abstractpainting #materialbasedart #contemporaryart

A field of lived material.

I shape the field,�but the material has its own direction.

Each pair carrying what it has lived through:�worn in, marked, cherished, remembered.

What happens when a field like this is built with others,�shaped by the people and the place it comes from?

Denim Field #2
19 March 2026
69 lives lived, recorded in jeans
approx. 13 top / 9 bottom x 21 feet
Temporary installation

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday. — Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #upcycleddenim #contemporaryinstallation materialbasedart

Rebirth has left LOOK @lookarlington and is back above my desk.

It felt like the painting for today: green, with traces of what came before still showing through.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day.

Rebirth
March–May 2024
Acrylic with acrylic wash on bleached denim harvested from jeans
15.75 x 25.75 in
From the Artist’s Collection

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday.
— Nolan.Studio

#stpatricksday #DMVartist #denimart #upcycleddenim #abstractpainting #materialbasedart #contemporaryart #modernpainting

Planet #5 has been accepted into the March 2026 Open at The Art League and is now on view at the Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria.

The painting is made from denim harvested from jeans. In my Planet series, intentional negative space emerges as the denim dries with the acrylic. The patterns worn into the jeans, the lived experiences, shape how the material settles and ultimately complements the emotion of the piece.

On view
11 March – 5 April
The Art League @theartleague, The Torpedo Factory @torpedofactory

Seeing beauty—art—in the everyday. — Nolan.Studio

#DMVartist #denimart #abstractpainting #modernpainting #intuitiveart

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@nolan.studio.art

I share behind-the-scenes process, new pieces, and exhibition updates on Instagram.

Exhibitions & Installations

If you’d like to see my work in person, I regularly exhibit throughout the
Greater DC, Maryland, and Virginia area.

Current and Upcoming

Color Ensemble, DC Arts Center · April 10 - July 9, 2026
Green @ Cade Center for Fine Arts · April 28 - July 16, 2026
Virginia Hospital Center · May 8 - August 14, 2026
Northside Social (see works) · June 5 - Sept 4, 2026
Where It Lands: The Space Between, DC Arts Center · June 11 - July 9, 2026
Foundry Gallery · July 1-30, 2026
July Open, The Art League · July 8 - August 2, 2026
Summer Art Market, Del Ray Artisans · July 12, 2026
Fifty: A Community Memoir, Touchstone Gallery · July 16 - August 16, 2026
All Members Show (M-Z), Falls Church Arts · July 18 - August 23, 2026
Wall Mountables, DC Arts Center · July 24 - August 21, 2026
All Members Show (M-Z), Arlington Artist Alliance · August 5 - Sept 9, 2026
Arlington Visual Art Studio Tour (AVAST) · Sept 26, 2026

Jeans. Bleach. Cut. Wash. Dry. Wood, nails, hammer. Dryer lint. Acrylic.

Becomes…

Ocean. Forest.

Planets. Mosaic. Passion. Life.

Washington. 2024!

Echoes. Becoming. Drift.

I’ve kept every pair of jeans I’ve owned since I was a teenager, without knowing why. Maybe it was the comfort, the familiarity, a story my grandfather told me, or simply the feeling they had more to give. Jeans carry warmth, memory, and history—art worn into them over time. The bleach, the cutting, the washing help those stories and emotions surface, revealing what was always there.

Jeans are something we wear everyday. There is beauty—art—in the everyday.

Nolan.Studio

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Exhibitions & Installations

Current and Upcoming

Home

Small Works

The Denim Stories Project™️

About

Nolan.Studio

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Follow along on Instagram

Exhibitions & Installations

Current and Upcoming

Home

Small Works

The Denim Stories Project™️

About