As a multi-disciplinary artist, textiles are the core of my creative journey.  I delve into themes of gender and ancestry, as well as social and political structures. Through my work using repurposed textiles, embroidery, block printing, and heavy metals, I create narratives that reflect the deep complexity of human existence.

I earned my BFA in Costume Design and Production from the California Institute of the Arts (CalARTS), and my education extended beyond my major, exposing me to a variety of artistic disciplines and innovative creatives. I spent 16 years in the vibrant worlds of film and television. In 2021, I transitioned from the film industry to focus on my own art practice.

In recent years, my work has been featured in various publications, such as Quiltfolk New Mexico Issue 33, The New Mexico Field Guide, Northern Eclecta, and Tempo. I also teach workshops in textile art across the US.

Nicki is the founder and creator of a small business called Knomad Tiger. www.knomadtiger.com

Photograph by: Taylor Field, Curator for Re-Monstering Showcase Fall 2025

For a more in-depth look at my work, including titles, sizes, prices, and descriptions, visit my:

Artwork Archive

  • A faux fur coat hung on a hanger with a pink fabric interior featuring embroidered outlines of the human heart and digestive system.

    Underneath It All

  • A framed textile quilt patchwork with various blue and white fabric patterns, including a stitched outline of a person's arm with long fingernails holding a hammer.

    If I were a hammer

  • Cream-colored linen shirt with lace crochet neckline and hem, featuring embroidered lungs with blue and tan threads.

    Little Lungs

  • Vintage men's dress socks with embroidery that says 'MIGRATION' hanging on a barbed wire fence with black and white signs. This land art is set against grassy fields, distant hills, and a partly cloudy sky.

    Migration

  • A patchwork quilt with various colored fabric sections, including pink, navy, floral, gray, and beige, arranged in a rectangular pattern. The center is two women facing each other upside down. The image is created using sashiko embroidery.

    She/Her

  • A vintage turn-of-the-century crochet lace top with detail at the neckline, hanging on a wire hanger with clothespins, featuring a red embroidered anatomical heart with hanging threads design.

    Her Bleeding Heart

  • Fabric cloth with a drawing of an eye, surrounded by radiating lines, with a small red tear drop shape at the bottom left corner.

    The Watcher

  • Mixed media textile artwork with a woman shape in red, pink, and beige fabric patches, lace, and a red bandana tied in a bow, framed in wood.

    Resist

  • Embroidery in yellow and blue of a split brain on a white vintage dinner napkin.

    MRI

  • A large window in an art gallery featuring a black and white striped cloth with an orange section that reads 'America Dept of Corruption,' hanging inside a glass showcase.

    Time

  • A decorative piece made of a driftwood branch hanging on a white wall, with multiple red braided repurposed textiles draped from it.

    Unbound #2

  • Embroidery of a uterus on a white vintage dinner napkin.

    Pap

  • A textile artwork depicting a profile of a woman with long black hair, a headband, and traditional clothing. The background features various patterns, a cactus, a cloud, a red sun or moon, a bull skull, and abstract designs.

    Ancestry: Phenomenal Woman

  • A dark blue square piece of velvet fabric with a large blue circle in the center, mounted on a wall.

    Moon

  • A decorative wall hanging featuring colorful fabric patches with patterns and images, including a longhorn skull, feathers, and silhouettes of lizards. It is suspended from a piece of driftwood on a white wall. Part of a staircase with wooden steps and a black metal support is visible on the top right. A white wall-mounted lamp and a rounded dark brown chair are also in the scene.

    Ancestry: Offerings

  • Colorful soft sculptures in the shape of stars hanging on a wall.

    Star Bundle

  • A wall art piece shaped like a person wearing a hoodie and jacket, made from cut fabric with patches of American flag and red, black, gray, and white patterns. Red rose petals are scattered on the floor below.

    In Loving Memory

Two black and silver fabric placemats with a wolf silhouette design on a round wooden table, with a small potted plant in the background.

Knomad Tiger X Nicki Stewart

A sustainable brand that uses repurposed textiles to create one-of-a-kind home goods and upcycled apparel.

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Students learning the art of block printing around a table.

Textile Art Educator

Throughout the year, I have the pleasure of leading workshops in various locations, each designed to inspire creativity and craftsmanship.

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