Local artist and gallery owner,Nicole Porter, has managed to establish a fine reputation in just a few years. Educated at Ellon Academy and then Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, where she obtained a First Class Honours Degree in Fine Art in 2008, Nicole then embarked on a series of study placements in Norway, Paris and New York. Returning to Aberdeen in 2010 and with no business experience, she decided to open her own gallery. Looking back, she says, ”It was a bold move. Creating paintings is one thing, but being able to run a successful business is another thing altogether”. Well, she did make a success of it and her Gallery is now very well established and flourishing. Over the years she has won many awards for her work and exhibited in galleries in both the UK and abroad. Her speciality is portraiture but she also paints inspirational city landscapes. She now juggles, her painting and gallery management with bringing up a family of three small children.