Artist Statement – Jackson Nelis

Posted by on Jul 4, 2021 in Eltham, Exhibitions, Studio Gallery, Uncategorized | Comments Off on Artist Statement – Jackson Nelis

The 9th of April 2020 was the day I decided that I was going to start painting after avoiding the medium for about a decade. This all started because my year 12 art teacher showed me a Basquiat painting and I fell in love.

Honestly I discovered my passion instantly that spiralled into a creative fever. I’ve made around 100 individual works by now,  I’ve collaborated with another artist thought Instagram and I’ve explored different mediums.  Paint however is my favourite medium to work with and it’s what I spend the majority of my time using. When I make my art it’s significantly influenced by my emotions, mood or just what I want to say.  They have always fuelled my passion to create. I create art so I can express myself, for me it is the voice that people will genuinely listen to and take somewhat seriously. Where as words may fall short, my art can convey and express my message.  It’s hard to ignore what’s right in front of you demanding attention.

The way I make art is relatively quick and sporadic.  I find whatever I can paint on whether it’s canvas, paper, synthetic sheets from an old blind, a cardboard box, an old mailbox. Anything that I can get my hands on I will paint on. Usually I paint in the same janky outfit I’ve been painting in since that April day. I’ve upgraded my arsenal of materials though and have been trying new colours, new mediums and new characters in my work.  I’m always trying to branch out to see what works and what I can achieve with my skills. One of the beautiful things about my works is that I know how to decode them, with hindsight I can look back at my works and see how the things I expressed still affect me now,  or how those meanings within the works can alter from new perspectives.  I can look at different works I have done and see how they are interlinked with the same ideas or feelings expressed in them, even though they may have been completed in different mediums or colours. People might not be able to pick up on that straight away or interpret what I wanted to convey.  That’s one of the things that is so cool about making my work.  I have the inside knowledge and it’s fun to see differing responses.  This has been eye-opening which is great for someone who likes to delve in the grey area between the “black and white”. It’s where I thrive. And that’s where I want my works to sit.  I want my works to be in the grey area.  Where people may see things they might be uncomfortable with.  People might look at them and get uneasy.  Whether it’s how I construct a body and face, a sentence, how I put colours together…. Really I just want to be the devil’s advocate in some works. I want to convey my own point of view and feelings.  My work is constantly evolving as I explore new styles and symbols and strive for new ways to say what I want to say.

So welcome to THE INTERLUDE where I show you a year’s worth of work and thoughts, positive and negative with everything in between.

From yours truly, SANTO