The Sign of an Artist
From classic cars to colorful murals, Nicole Knight paints it all
Nicole Knight pulled two sawhorses out of her sign shop and set them up in the shadow of her open overhead door. The hot July sun made working in her shop nearly impossible. She laid a plywood board across the top and using her jigsaw, cut along the curved lines of a design she’d drawn on the wood. As the saw broke through the end of the board, she shut it down, pulled off her safety glasses, ran her hand along the fresh cut and smiled with satisfaction.
“That will work,” she said, explaining that she was working on a couple of signs for a local business. “This one is an easy project.”
Shortly after, an elderly gentleman drove up and got out of his car with a wrinkled roll of brown paper in his hands.
“What do you have for me?” she asked, as he unrolled the paper and interpreted the rudimentary drawn picture and measurements into what he hoped his vision would become.
“I can do it,” Nicole said confidently. “I’ll let you know when I have something to show you.”
Before he left, he repeated the story of buying his ’72 Dodge Demon 48 years ago for $700, and Nicole smiled as he drove off.
“Part of what I do is listen,” she says. “I take time to stop and visit because everybody has a story about their cars. They love their cars. I have a Rat Rod, I understand. If someone comes to me to do something with their car, I treat it like it’s mine.”
Nicole has owned and operated Advantage Signs and Pinstriping since she opened in 1999. She paints everything from signs, windows and murals to logos, graphics and pinstripes on vehicles and motorcycles. She’s been painting signs since she was a teenager, when she first started helping her father, Nick Knight, paint billboards as large as 12 feet by 48 feet along Interstate 90 and in locations around town.
As the sole owner and only worker, Nicole is constantly in the middle of multiple jobs. Some days she’s juggling up to a dozen at a time. She designs and paints the windows of dozens of businesses around town. Most of them change with the seasons and promotions, which keeps her busy year-round.
“The weather and the temperature dictate when I can paint windows,” she says. “In the summer, I chase the shade and in the winter, I’m looking for sunshine. In between painting windows, I’m working on something else.”
She gets unique requests from customers, such as the work she’ll do on the sides of the Dodge Demon, where she will be applying a vinyl design and pinstripes instead of hand painting it.
“I’ll work his template into a sign software program with line art, where I can directly plot and cut the vinyl. I’ll make a proof and mock it up to make sure it fits. Then I’ll have it large-format printed and put it on the car.”
Two years ago, Nicole was asked by an industrial business in the Billings Industrial Revitalization District (BIRD) to paint a mural for the Wild West Walls, a public art project, which resulted in almost 30 murals around the east end of downtown Billings. Nicole chose to create a Montana postcard, visible on the south wall of the Vemco building on First Ave North.
“That’s one I’m really proud of,” Nicole says. After drawing the plan out, she projected the image on the 20-by-60-foot wall and then drew much of the design before she painted it. The mural says “Greetings from the Treasure State,” with the word “Montana” in all caps. Teepees, buffalo, a Cutthroat trout, a bobcat, a cowboy, the gate to Yellowstone Park at Gardiner and the Beartooth Mountains each individually fill a letter as symbols of the state. Montana’s state bird, the Meadowlark, and flower, the Bitterroot, along with a grizzly, claim the forefront of the colorful, three-dimensional mural.
“I love seeing pictures of people sitting on their car in front of the mural or posing in front of it,” Nicole says. “I even saw a picture of a cowboy on a horse on front of it.”
Nicole grew up with her artistic father and business-minded mother, a combination that she says helped launch her career. “My mom helped me buy the equipment I needed, and Dad taught me everything he knew about the business. He still steps in when I need it.”
Nick worked alongside Nicole when they painted the Montana mural and just recently, he and Nicole’s uncle, Tim Knight, did a joint project when all three worked together on a mural at the Buckeye Bar in Bridger.
“Dad’s 78 and it amazes me that he’s still able to do this,” Nicole says.
Nicole is strong herself, having been a powerlifter in years past. “I started in high school,” she explains. “I didn’t realize how my sport would impact my career, but I have to be strong to tote 4-foot by 8-foot pieces of plywood around by myself.”
In her prime, her best deadlift was 350 pounds, her best squat was 315 pounds and her best bench press was 181. “I can’t do that anymore,” she laughs. “But I still work out as often as I can.”
Outside of running her business, Nicole enjoys painting pictures on unique pieces as a hobby. She’s currently working on a car hood for an upcoming event and paints whimsical yard signs, ornaments and thermoses that she sells.
She also spent 17 years coaching powerlifting for the Special Olympics. In 2011, she was one of the power lifting assistant coaches for Team USA’s Special Olympic team for the World Games in Greece.
“My sister was severely handicapped,” she says. “When she passed away, I got involved with Special Olympics by helping in the only way I knew how — powerlifting. It was a very fulfilling time in my life.”
Taking time away from the shop to enjoy friends is important to Nicole. “I have incredible friends and family that have supported me over the years,” she says. “I couldn’t do what I do without their support and encouragement.”
Nicole says that no two days are alike in her line of work. Between scheduling jobs, attending trade shows and tackling small projects, her creative personality is one that loves being challenged.
“Everything that has happened in my life has happened because of my circumstances,” Nicole says. “I’m very blessed. I have incredible friends and family that support me and I’m grateful for the life I have. Everyday above ground is a good day, and life is good!”
