nelson

TJay Nelson was born in the Philippines & raised in Illinois & Indiana; arriving in Phoenix in 1981. Once in Phoenix, Nelson studied under local art teacher Loren Neal for 10 years, who served as his mentor. He was also influenced by his 8th grade art teacher in Indiana.
For as long as he can remember he created works in a variety of media including charcoal drawings, paintings in watercolor, acrylic, and oil, mixed media, sculpture metal and clay, photography, graphic arts and interior design. He remembers seeing prints of original works in people's homes when he was younger, and thinking, "Everyone should have real art in their home." By "real" he means original pieces created by the artist; be they of the infamous or of the amateur caliber. "Why should I buy a print, when I can get a painting from the Salvation Army or a consignment shop that was actually painted by the artist them self? You get the same canvas that was worked on by that artist - that's real art." A strong proponent of recycling, Nelson tries to only use recycled materials to create his artwork and designs. He says it is amazing how many people will throw out something that he is at the same time needing and looking for… mainly being wood, metal, paint and an array of other necessary materials that can be used in making and designing art. He tries to ALWAYS reuse, recycle and repurpose and ONLY buys new supply materials as a last resort. The amount of things going into landfills that can actually be reused is mind boggling, He says “I am always educating people on the benefits of recycling, and sometimes because I took the time….they have some type of raw material they are getting rid of…so it pays off, both artistically and environmentally.
Nelson's art can best be described as eclectic-to say the least. At his
first show, where 100% of the proceeds went to the American Diabetes Association, patrons could not believe that all the pieces were produced by the same artist due to the variety of styles, palettes and techniques. This chameleon-like talent certainly made his first show a success. 49 of the 50 pieces selected were sold at silent auction to a throng of 300 guests raising nearly $6,000 for the ADA. This array of unconventional style and design, Nelson states, was inspired by his experiences while living in Tucson, Orlando, and twice in Manhattan, the creative workshop of Keith Haring, Nelson's greatest influence and who he calls the Andy Warhol of his generation.
Nelson’s passion in life has always been to create, to design and to beautify his surroundings. Having over 20 years of experience in doing just that, it comes as no surprise that he currently specializes in interior design including graphic arts, photography, art gallery shows, and artwork on a commissioned basis. His flair for art and design is in demand these days, acting as a general style consultant for co-workers, neighbors and friends…home interior design, personal stylist, contract work, fashion….he handles it all.
He’s also currently is involved in a youth mentoring program in which he plans to pay it forward and pass on his knowledge of art and design to those in which he mentors.
His future plans will be to continue to do interior design, paint art and do photo shoots but will also be to work on commissioned art/design projects with patrons in other cities throughout the U.S
Buying mass-produced commercial art & prints is NOT something you will see Nelson doing or promoting. “Why not support your local artists? Their paintings might even cost less than a mass produced piece would?” This is one artist who creates art passionately, not for money or prestige, but for the sole belief that everyone should have affordable "real" art in their home…made preferably from recycled materials.