Interview with Nika Fontaine

Nika Fontaine is a French-Canadian artist whose creativity shines as brightly as the glitter that covers much of her work. Now based in Berlin, she has built a fascinating artistic universe where spirituality, kitsch, and glamour coexist in a dazzling symphony of color and meaning. Nika is not only an artist but also a coffin designer, curator, and the creator of the projects Kitsch Lexikon and Kitschypedia, which explore the cultural significance and emotional resonance of kitsch as both an aesthetic and philosophical concept. Her artistic practice is wonderfully diverse, encompassing painting, sculpture, video, performance, photography, and music, all of which serve as vehicles for her exploration of transformation, mortality, and self-expression. At the heart of Nika’s art lies a desire to challenge perceptions and redefine what is considered beautiful, sacred, or excessive. Her glitter paintings blend lyrical spirituality with the unapologetic sparkle of glam and pop culture, while her coffin designs offer a striking meditation on death and rebirth. For Nika, a coffin is not simply a container for the end of life but a celebration of existence, a reflection on ego and vanity, and an invitation to embrace mortality with humor, color, and grace. 

 

One of her most symbolic works, Pimp My Ride to Heaven, created for the Deutsche Bank Kunsthalle in 2014, became both a personal and artistic statement, marking the symbolic burial of her former self, Nicolas, and the radiant emergence of Nika. Her approach to art is deeply personal yet universal. Spirituality, introspection, and playfulness are intertwined in her creations, which often mirror her own journey as a transgender woman navigating transformation and acceptance. Though she prefers to be known simply as an authentic creator rather than a “transgender artist,” her story and perspective enrich her work with profound emotional depth and authenticity. She believes that art can elevate the soul, and even in its most decorative or glamorous form, it remains a tool for communication, connection, and healing. In Berlin’s vibrant artistic scene, Nika has found both inspiration and freedom. Surrounded by a community that embraces diversity and bold self-expression, she continues to push boundaries with her projects, exhibitions, and performances. Her work reminds us that art can be both serious and playful, sacred and outrageous, elegant and loud. Above all, Nika Fontaine’s artistic journey is a celebration of life itself, its contradictions, its beauty, and its infinite potential for reinvention.

 

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Nika Fontaine, an inspirational Canadian artist based in Berlin, Germany, as well as a coffin designer and curator of the Kitsch Lexikon and Kitschypedia. Her artistic practice includes glitter paintings, sculptures, video, music, photography, and performance art. Hello Nika!

Nika: Hello Monika! Thank you for the invitation. Your blog played a big role in my process of acceptance!

 

Picture by Lucas Recchione for Artitious.

 

Monika: Thank you, Nika. Could you please tell us a little more about yourself?

Nika: I very much like your introduction, maybe I can just make it more precise. I am French Canadian and I have been living in Berlin for almost seven years now. I started the transition process one year and a half ago.

Monika: Your artistic expression includes a wide variety of media, but I am especially intrigued by your fascination with coffins. How did this unusual artistic interest begin?

Nika: Yes indeed, there is a big variety of techniques that I pursue. The coffin project is still only at its beginning, but I expect to make a whole collection of them. I have been fascinated by death for a long time. Most probably because I lost my father at a very young age, it brought me to question this universal phenomenon very early.

Monika: That’s a very profound source of inspiration. How did your fascination with death first manifest itself in your artistic journey?

Nika: I remember one of my 5th-grade assignments; I did a speech about death and the possibilities of the afterlife and ghost photography. Later on, through painting, performance, and video, I explored that topic in various ways, but mostly with sarcasm and humor.

Monika: What do you hope to express or achieve through your coffin series today?

Nika: Personally, I am not afraid of death since I don't see it as an end but more as a new beginning. My goal with the coffin series is to bring some joy and celebration to the funeral tradition as well as a new understanding and appreciation of life by lessening the fear of disappearing. There is also a play on the art market, that if someone decides to get buried in one of my coffins, the loop of resale and speculation is stopped. I can also mention my love for design, and I think coffins can be very seductive and fetishized objects. It brings to light a question about ego and vanity at the same time. On another hand, my first piece, Pimp My Ride to Heaven, which was produced for a show at the Deutsche Bank Kunsthalle in 2014, was in a way my own coffin where I buried my life as Nicolas to give place to Nika.

Installation view, Deutsche Bank Kunsthalle, 2014.
Picture by Daisy Loewl.

Monika: You work with many different media, including video, sound, photography, text, drawing, painting, installation, and performance. Which of these forms of expression do you feel most connected to?

Nika: I started with painting and I think this will always be my beloved medium. I wish I could compose music as freely as I paint... maybe it will come. Sculpture is very new in my practice, but I fell in love with it instantly.

Monika: It sounds like your artistic interests continue to evolve. Which directions do you see your work taking in the near future?

Nika: In the near future sculptures, textile-based works, and fountains will definitely be as present as painting is for me now. I must say that I don't really enjoy performing in general... I just get so stressed... But somehow people keep asking me for more and I tend to just do it.
Monika: Your glitter paintings combine lyrical spirituality with the dazzling language of glamour and kitsch. What sparked this unique fusion of themes in your art?

Nika: For a long time spirituality has been my main theme in many forms. I incorporate my beliefs and personal experiences into my works. This interest in the invisible started at a very young age under the influence of my mother and aunt, who were into new age culture and dream exploration. One of my great uncles in Canada is a monk, and although my immediate family was not very religious, we always had great respect for spiritual sensibility through him, Jean-Marc.

Monika: Your art beautifully bridges spirituality and visual excess. How do you use kitsch and glamour to express your ideas?

Nika: I believe in life as a quest for elevation and art as a means of communication and teaching. The kitsch and glam aspect of the work is mostly my visual interest. I use this aesthetic language to express my beliefs. Some projects are also purely decorative, and I am not ashamed to say so. For me, decoration is very important to the well-being of the soul. Having said that, there is always a part of it that tends to elevate the soul.

With her friend Valeska.

Monika: You seem to be constantly creating and exploring new ideas. What projects are you currently working on?

Nika: Yes, maybe too many actually... I am preparing a series of exhibitions that will launch my career on a more international scene. In May I will be performing in a theater piece in Berlin for the first time. At the same time, I am continuing the development of the platform Kitschypedia and curating an upcoming exhibition in December about kitsch. The coffin project is also one of my occupations. For now, it is only at the beginning, but hopefully, it will be fully operational in 2017.
Monika: Many artists explore identity in their work. Do you think there is such a thing as transgender art?

Nika: Of course there is! But I wouldn't say my work is "transgender art." Some people might associate my work with queer culture solely because of my use of glitter and kitsch icons, but that would be a mistake.

Monika: How would you personally define transgender art?

Nika: My definition of transgender art is mostly art that expresses this topic as its main content. I personally don't want to address this topic all the time, though in August I will prepare a project that fits within this definition of transgender art.

Monika: What does being a transgender artist mean to you on a personal level?

Nika: To me, being a transgender artist is nothing more or less than being a male, female, Black, white, or First Nation artist. One can choose to talk about it if one wants, though life and art are not all about who you are. Of course, being a minority often sparks the need for expression, and with knowledge comes responsibility. Therefore, I will make this project in August, but I don't want to be exclusively identified as a transgender artist, but rather as an authentic creator. There are many trans artists out there who do a better job at creating political works. I leave that to them and focus on my own strengths and interests.

Monika: Do you follow the work of other transgender artists, and are there any whose art has particularly caught your attention?

Nika: I was approached by the collective Trans Time to be part of their next exhibition, which will be in Berlin in 2016. This group, curated and organized by the fantastic Ianna Book, includes a wonderful selection of talented transgender artists, the most famous of whom are Zackary Drucker and Rhys Ernst. I try to stay as updated as possible with the trans artistic community, even though, as I mentioned, I am not always engaged on the same level.

Installation view, Kunstlerhaus Bethanien.

Monika: How would you describe the current situation of transgender women in Canada and Germany?

Nika: I think it's better than ever. With people like Ianna Book organizing exhibitions like Trans Time in Canada and Germany, it increases the visibility of a wide range of artistic perspectives from genderqueer artists.

Monika: Do you believe the art world reflects this growing acceptance, or does it still face challenges?

Nika: The art world has always been more open than many other fields, such as science or business, but that doesn’t mean it is fully inclusive. I think there is still more to be done in the art market than in the art world. In 2015 the art market is still mostly white male-dominated, which needs to change. In that sense, I can identify as an advocate since my ambitions are great, and I wish to become the Martine Rothblatt of the art world. I don't know many trans public figures in Germany, except for a few artists, but in Berlin, the level of acceptance is excellent. I can hardly imagine a better place to transition. German politics is ahead of Canadian politics in that regard.

Monika: When did you begin your transition, and how challenging was the process for you?

Nika: I started the transition process just before turning 29. In some ways, it was very easy since my family and those around me were very supportive. The hardest part was coming out. I first realized explicitly that I was trans in 2010, but it took me four years to take the step toward acceptance and transition. My first memory of gender dysphoria goes back as far as when I was four years old. It never went away, but I just didn’t understand what that feeling was, and then when puberty began, I thought it was just a weird sexual fantasy, which I was ashamed of.

Project "Souls in a Box". Picture by Alessandra Mannisi.

Monika: How did you navigate your transition once you began hormone therapy and started living openly as yourself?

Nika: After doing more research and meeting trans women with whom I could identify, I began to understand the nature of my discomfort. Shortly after starting HRT, I came out more broadly to my extended friends and colleagues and started living full time in my own expression of femininity. There are many obstacles in daily life, which at first seem very hard but quickly become manageable, like going out for the first time wearing makeup or heels, wearing a skirt, or no longer hiding my chest with a sports bra, as well as dealing with confrontations in public spaces, especially on the train. The hardest part was developing confidence and patience, as nothing seemed to happen fast enough.

END OF PART 1

PART 2

 

All photos: courtesy of Nika Fontaine.

Main photo credits: Alessandra Mannisi.

© 2015 - Monika Kowalska