Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nicolai Valdís. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Nicolai, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I knew since I was a small child that I wanted to be a performer and artist when I grew up. I just never thought I had the power in my own body to make it happen.
I was a small, sickly, neurodivergent, queer child in an environment that didn’t want me to flourish. I grew up in a small, conservative, Baptist community, and I was very different and everything I did and everything I was was frowned upon. I was often punished for asking questions or getting too excited, or simply not being able to physically do the sports that they demanded every kid participate in. But I knew what I wanted to do and what I wanted to be, and I think that scared them. Their inability to control me made them angry, and it caused me to have to sit out of a lot of fun activities, which got me made fun of by the other kids. It was not easy to break out of.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a queer, trans nonbinary clown, artist, performer, model. I have done acting in small roles in films, plays, and haunts. I model for weird photography shoot themes, like graveyard mourner, vampire, and of course clown.
A lot of my artwork is clowns, but I also make other silly little guys, and work with a variety of mediums. My art is inspired by my disabilities, being queer, mental health, etc. But despite my struggles and the world we live in, I try to just bring a little joy and whimsy to people’s lives.
I started honestly just by throwing myself into things. Someone has an opening for extras in a film, just go for it. Want to make art? Just make it and share it. I spent so much of my life thinking nothing I do was that interesting or good enough to share, but I found that the best way to deal with that is just post the thing. You’re going to get rude comments, sure, but you’ll also get love. And you’ll never know what people are going to think until you post the thing!

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

Buy art from artists. Share your friend’s art when they post it. Even if you can’t buy something big from them, buy a sticker, buy a pin. Or if they have a way to tip them, just give them a few bucks when you can spare it. No one is asking people to go into debt to help out artists, just do what you can when you can.
And don’t buy prints from cheap companies that steal people’s art.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

That art has to look a certain way, or be completely clean and “perfect” to be beautiful and loved.
It took me too many years of my life hiding or even throwing away/burning my art because it wasn’t “good enough” for me to learn that my art was worth sharing. I’m still nervous whenever I post a new piece, and I get a little down on myself when I’m not able to sell anything or get a gig somewhere. But I have to remind myself that just because my art/acting/singing/performing wasn’t what they were looking for, doesn’t mean it’s bad. Sure, there’s a lot of imperfections in my work, but that just makes it more human.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ko-fi.com/flamboyantaggression
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flamboyantaggression
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100094037765821
• Other: Clown stuff:
  https://www.instagram.com/SillyLilClownnn

  @sillylilclownnn

  
  https://youtube.com/@sillylilclownnn
  Modeling and miscellaneous:
  https://www.instagram.com/VarneySioux

Image Credits

Vampire photo shoot (pictures 5 & 6) photographed by Kelsey Murphy

7th photograph from the set of the film “Power of Positive Murder” release date TBD. by Troma Films