Working with independent businesses on the rows, artist Nikki Pinder has created a trail of festive windows. The colourful displays feature hidden elements with the chance to win a £50 Chester Gift Card.

Nikki is an illustrator and mural artist who turned professional 18 years ago. “I’ve always drawn and painted since I was 3. When I was at school I was always drawing . At the beginning of High School I started to think I’d like to this as a job. I was thinking about being an illustrator. I did my Foundation Art at College and then studied Graphic Design at Nottingham Trent University.

“It was very broad so we did photography, prints, drawing. I focused on illustration and had some good guidance from a lecturer who was a professional illustrator. We were offered a project working with The Prodigy. They were about to release an album (Their Law) and asked if a group of students wanted to work with Liam Howlett and EMI to produce a design for the whole album release. EMI looked at the designs and gave us feedback, we didn’t end up producing the art for print but it was great to get the opportunity to understand the whole creative process.

“Just after that there was a competition for Graduate Fashion Week while I was still at university. I designed some mechanical characters and put them on a T shirt. I won first place. The design was used by River Island and I had an article about my work in GQ magazine. I got in touch with River Island and they commissioned me to do a series of satchel bags and T shirts. They were on sale all over the UK.“

After establishing her business Nikki was based in Northwich for a few years but worked all over the UK including London and Liverpool and Manchester. selling and exhibiting her art. She says that a move to North Wales was “really inspiring” and helped her to develop her style.

She first started window displays during her time at Funky Aardvark, producing seasonal and Pride themed designs. Her first large scale commissioned window was for COW on Bold street in Liverpool. In Chester Nikki produced a rows trail in the summer, which she later expanded over the Halloween period:

“I created 10 bugs for a Halloween Trail on Watergate street. I gave them all names and was thinking about their personalities and backstories. Lots of people engaged with the art and it was great to see how my artwork came to life. It was nice to see the positive responses, compared to doing book illustration where its hard to get direct feedback. All of the bugs were made from recycled carboard from supermarkets . I did it to inspire other people and show they can create their own art”

The new Christmas trail will be in place until the 31st December and has been designed to match the needs of the businesses, taking their input on board with the aim of encouraging people up onto the rows to explore and search for the hidden elements. There are 10 windows to find and 2 bonus windows, with some of the art also found inside the businesses. ” The great thing is I got to use all my art skills. I’ve been painting, using graphite, acrylics. It’s the most fun project I’ve ever done. ” Of the growing community of creatives in Chester she says :

“I started doing artwork in Chester around 2005 and I think the creative community has got stronger since then. I’ve noticed people moving to Chester and staying here. Its becoming more diverse and open minded about what can be done. Its been a joy to work with the businesses and I’ve got to know a lot of people and they’ve all been so welcoming and I feel really connected with the Chester community!”

Discover all of the windows at the businesses on the trail sheet and find all the hidden items for your chance to win a £50 Chester Gift Card.

Trail poster available here https://www.visitcheshire.com/whats-on/the-rows-christmas-window-trail-p311211