Paul Niemi rekindled his childhood love affair with visual art in 2008, when he began creating hand painted wire mesh and paper mache masks representing relics from an alternate universe. The work was heavily influenced by his love of theatre, folk art, and the A.D.D.-induced quirky and unusual notebook margin doodles that he recalls drawing while a high school student. The mental excursions, which were often seen as breaks from the boredom of the classroom, earned Niemi superior grades and the ability to create clean and interesting lines, designs and characters. The masks earned him a solo gallery show in Albuquerque New Mexico’s Old Town in 2009.

His current mixed media work reflects his critical eye, sharp wit and queer perspective. In his drawings, scratchboards, tapestries, and paintings, nothing is ever what it seems. The spectator must consider all angles of a piece to fully see it. Some reflect today’s society, while others express random thoughts that guide the pen, implement or brush. Niemi has participated in group exhibitions at New York’s Pleiades Gallery, the Woodstock Byrdcliffe Guild in the Hudson Valley, Dakota Arts in Bellingham, Washington and the Jansen Art Center in Lynden, Washington. He currently collaborates with Whatcom County abstract painter Lori VanEtta.