FLAMINGO LADY OF MIAMI BEACH | Niki Butcher

Miami Beach © 1985

Photographic Story There are places throughout the United States that seem to attract fun, quirky, and unique people. Cities like Key West, New Orleans, and Miami Beach are places where I had the good fortune to meet unusual and funky folks. I met the Flamingo Lady of Miami Beach in the Art Deco district in the 1980s. She owned a fantastic vintage clothing store, and she was a lot of fun to be around. She was strong, opinionated, and a great sport. She allowed me to photograph her, and she even brought her own props! The Art of Hand Painting Black and White Photographs Niki prints her images on fiber-base black and white mat surface paper in the darkroom, then using Q-tips and cotton balls, she applies a thin coat of oil paint over the surface allowing the image to gently be seen through the oil paint. Archival Print Making Niki’s open edition gicleé artwork is printed on Sunset Bright Velvet Rag matte finish paper using eight archival inks. A state-of-the-art Epson Stylus Pro printer creates deep, rich dark values that hold subtle detail in the shadows as well as bright vivid colors that are truly tropical.