Nicole Manning

Draíocht welcomes Nicole Manning to the Artists Studio for the month of August.

Nicole Manning is a Dublin based painter and recent graduate of NCAD. Inspired by the mind-body connection and the interplay between the physical and psychological, her work explores the external expression of inner turmoil within the human experience.

Rooted in her own experience of living with chronic stomach pain as a symptom of PTSD, Manning’s work investigates how trauma manifests within the body. Using gestural, twisting brushwork that echoes the form of the intestines, she incorporates symbolic and archetypal imagery — such as curled bodies, beds, and animals — which serve as metaphor and alter-ego. Through this visual language, she translates internal pain into visible form.

Manning is currently expanding her research to critically examine the historical neglect of the female body within medical science. Her forthcoming body of work investigates gender bias, misdiagnosis, and the somatic manifestations of trauma, employing storytelling and visual language as tools for shared understanding and cultural reflection. Since graduating, she has been awarded the Clancy Quay Studio Residency Award (2024–25) and has been selected for an upcoming international residency at RAMA, located outside Lisbon, Portugal, in late 2025.