He met Velázquez (their relationship is reported by Antonio Palomino) in Madrid during his youth, and later studied in Italy, where he is documented in 1643 and where he established an atelier at Como. He returned to Murcia around 1650, where he executed his most famous works, the mural paintings of the Trinity Convent.
Doval Trueba, María del Mar, co-published with: Pérez Sánchez, Alfonso E. (2003). Los "velazqueños": pintores que trabajaron en el taller de Velázquez., Vol. I, Complutense University, Madrid. ISBN84-669-1050-6.
López Jiménez, José Crisanto (1964). Don Nicolás de Villacis Arias, discípulo de Velázquez. University of Valladolid, Boletín del Seminario de Estudios de Arte y Arqueología, Volume 30, p. 195-210. ISSN0210-9573.
Pina Pérez, Ángel (1992). Los frescos de Villacis en la iglesia del convento de la Trinidad: historia de una tragedia, Murcia: Verdolay, Revista del Museo Arqueológico de Murcia, no. 4, p. 203-210. ISSN1130-9776.