Nan Salky was born in 1956 in Memphis Tennessee. She received her BA in Writing and Illustrating Children’s Books from The University of Colorado, Boulder, and an MA in Counseling Psychology from Antioch New England. She has worked for thirty years as a psychotherapist, and reared two daughters. She lives in Amherst, Massachusetts with her husband, Tom Murphy, who supports and assists in her artistic endeavors.
As a child I was left free to explore the natural world. I felt exceptionally alive.
As often as possible I cast aside my lacy white socks and patent leathers to play in the fields and woods near my home.
My art often feels tied to this early period when my dolls were my closest companions and I could recreate my world with nests, sticks, acorns and bones.
Pity the poor artist searching for words
Colorful nouns and lively verbs
That have the power to convey
The soul of what is on display
Tales are told with sticks and bones
Pen and paint in vibrant tones
Allowing mystery or grace
A view into a sacred place
Within a world of endless choice
With gratitude I raise my voice
And offer from my hands and heart
My lifelong love affair with art
- Anchor House of Artists, Northampton, MA- September 2020
- Hope and Feathers Gallery, Amherst MA- March 2020
- Hope and Feathers Gallery, Amherst MA – September 2014
- Western New England College, Springfield MA- March 2011
- A Candle in the Night, Brattleboro VT – October, 2010
- Historic Northampton, Northampton MA – August 2010
- Northampton Center for the Arts, Northampton MA- March 2010
- Wistariahurst Museum “100 years of Textiles”, Holyoke, MA- November 2018
- Blanche Ames National Juried Art Exhibition, North Easton MA- September 2017
- Hope and Feathers Gallery, Amherst, MA- “Small Works” shows – 2014-2018