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Graham Nickson, 1946 – 2025
January 29, 2025 · News
The New York Studio School mourns the passing of our very own
Graham Nickson
Painter · Teacher · Visionary
1946 – 2025
Dean Emeritus Nickson led the School with unshakeable dedication, profound wisdom, and grit for 36 years.
Founder of the now legendary Drawing Marathon and leader of NYSS for more than half of its history, his teachings and heroic steadiness uplifted the lives of countless students, fellow artists, and members of our extended community.
We remain forever grateful for Graham’s elevating presence, oceanic knowledge, and profound generosity of spirit.
Letter from F. Anthony Zunino III Chair, Board of Trustees New York Studio School
The Brooklyn Rail, “A Tribute to Graham Nickson (1946–2025)”
April 2025
New York Times, “Graham Nickson, 78, Dies; Passionate Steward of the New York Studio School”
February 15, 2025
Two Coats of Paint Remembrance “Graham Nickson (1946–2025): Splendidly original”
February 15, 2025
New York Times Obituary
February 5, 2025
Hyperallergic Obituary
“Artist Graham Nickson, Who Led New York Studio School, Dies at 79. A galvanizing arts educator and accomplished painter, Nickson is also remembered for his fervent belief in the discipline of drawing.”
January 29, 2025
Graham devoted his life to supporting aspiring artists and removing barriers to education. We are proud to honor his legacy through the Graham Nickson Scholarship Fund.
![[RSVP FULL] We are currently at capacity for Bob Nickas' lecture, "Has Contemporary Art Run Its Course?", happening tonight on October 14th, 2026. There will be overflow space open in the downstairs gallery.
A critic and curator based in New York, Bob Nickas has organized more than 130 exhibitions since 1984. He was on the teams responsible for Aperto at the Venice Biennale in 1993, the 7th Bienal d’Art Contemporain de Lyon in 2003, and Greater New York 2005, at MoMA/PS1, where he served as Curatorial Advisor between 2004-07. Along with Peter Halley, he was founding Editor of Index magazine, which he helmed between 1996-2000. His writing has been widely published and translated, and five collections of essays and interviews have been published to date: Live Free Or Die (2000), Theft Is Vision (2008), The Dept. of Corrections (2016), Komplaint Dept. (2018), and Corrected Proofs (2023). He also published a yearlong daily diary, Yesterworld, (2022). In 2024, he founded the New York Art Critics Association.
At MoMA/PS1, Nickas organized the first U.S. museum survey exhibitions for Lee Lozano, Wolfgang Tillmans, Tom Sandberg, and Peter Hujar, as well as curated projects with Mike Cloud, Trisha Donnelly and Torbjorn Rodland. A prolific writer, he has authored and contributed to numerous monographs and books, among them for On Kawara, Olivier Mosset, Cady Noland, Steven Parrino, Yayoi Kusama, Dan Walsh, Stephen Shore, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Anne Collier, Gardar Eide Einarsson, Tomma Abts, Robert Grosvenor, Vija Celmins, Salvo, Peter Bradley, and Kathleen Ryan.
Nickas has lectured at many museums, art schools, and universities over the past forty years, and taught at Columbia University and New York University.
#newyorkstudioschool #nyss #arteducation #lecture](https://nyss.org/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)