Nicholas James Yourkonis is a narrative fine artist and illustrator. After studying independently throughout Europe and receiving a BFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, he has learned to paint what he sees, knows, and wishes he saw.
At the core of his practice, he contemplates themes of man versus man, man versus nature, and man versus self. He draws inspiration from the American Realists’ gritty depictions of city life, the technical ability the Baroque Masters commanded over their medium, and the narrative strength of the Golden Age illustration giants. Studying from the masters of these movements has allowed him to find both a conceptual and aesthetic foundation reminiscent of his historic mentors while deriving narrative and subject matter from personal observation. To combine technique and concept as one holistic idea remains his ultimate goal.
Nurturing a passion for both illustration and fine art serves as a way to balance the two voices within his spirit. One voice desires to communicate with fantastic epics like those told by Homer and Tolkien and to explore the many shared cultural myths that have subtly shaped society; the other voice seeks to document a more intimate personal story: growing up in a working-class household, reflecting on life as a sailor and laborer, and capturing the fragmented industrial landscape of the northeastern United States. He analyzes his personal experiences to investigate the essence of life as a worker in the 21st century.
Nicholas currently teaches illustration and painting courses at Camden County College, where he aims to instill in his students the same curious spirit that has long invigorated him. When he is not teaching, he is painting, reading, working in the PAFA woodshop, and observing the changing world around him.
“I am an artist, but first and foremost I am a worker. Art gives me the ability to express what that means to me. To show the viewer a life of strife, struggle, and perseverance. To make sense of the action and tension in the world that raised me.”
N.J. Yourkonis