Towards the end of March 2023, Zoe Thomas, intern at Olivier Cornet Gallery wrote about Nickie Hayden’s Calm, oil on board, 17.5x23cm (550 euro).

"Amidst the beginnings of the COVID-19 pandemic, Nickie Hayden had her first solo show at the Olivier Cornet Gallery called Sanctuary, which could be viewed from the safety of people’s homes. Inspiration for the show came from a poem written by American poet Peter Money, titled “To the Lady In Pink Standing On Top The Bridge.” The poem’s narrative describes a taxi rider who sees a woman debating whether to jump off the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City. The taxi passes before the rider can see if the woman jumps, and the reader is left wondering. Did the woman in the pink dress jump into the frigid waters below? Or did she decide to survive? After reading this poem, Hayden believed the women survived, and her survival inspired the show Sanctuary. 

While Sanctuary has concluded, the digital version is still located on the gallery’s website, and a couple pieces are located and available for purchase in the gallery’s storeroom. One of those pieces, titled Calm, caught my eye. Filled with warm light, the luminescent orange and saffron hues transport the viewer to the Brooklyn Bridge, which Hayden depicts in her abstract style. As in other work throughout this show, the artist uses geometric patterns to portray the strength she finds behind this particular woman, and all women. 

Hayden represents the woman standing on the bridge with the geometric shape of a triangle. Triangles are commonly seen as a strong shape that can hold much weight. Due to their structural integrity, triangles are often used for the shape of tents, for shelter. To Hayden, the woman’s dress reminded her not only of a triangle, but as a form of protection from the outside world. Like tents, Hayden saw this dress as armor. The dress became a form of strength and a safe haven for this woman. By finding places of sanctuary, it becomes possible to find calm and tranquility. 

While I was visually drawn to this piece, the meaning behind it is what truly spoke to me. It is easy, within life, to feel alone and ready to surrender. The world can become so loud that you may feel lost in its noise. Hayden’s work awakens our inner power to find sanctuary and peace. She partnered with the SAOL Sisters and multiple writers to pair ideas of sanctuary with art and poetry. Within Hayden’s exhibition, poetry became a meeting place where words and art could meet and harmonize. 

Money ends his poem with this stanza: 

“O lady O lady the lights 

behind me say hurry 

say madness, emergency.” 

Matching this energy, Hayden garnished the canvas of Calm with little lights that follow the structure of the Brooklyn Bridge. They surround the triangles, strategically placed in the centre of the piece creating depth. The viewer’s eyes are immediately drawn there, as they ponder the meaning of these triangles. The lights add another aspect to Hayden’s interpretation of the triangles as a safe haven from the outside world. The lights of the bridge, the city, and the madness surrounding our lives can overwhelm us. But through finding our armor, our pink dress, we may find calm and sanctuary amongst the wild. 

Nickie Hayden’s second solo show “Safe Harbour” opens in April 2023 in the Olivier Cornet Gallery. Not quite a solo show, the artist would argue, as she asked her partner, the artist Robert Russell to contribute 3D sculptures to the exhibition."