YabYum Seven: John Randall Nelson

Requiem for Trayvon, 22″ x 17″. Photos courtesy of John Randall Nelson

1. Who are you and what do you do?

I am John Randall Nelson, Bobo Johns, Merry Murphy, Nelso Phoenicio and Jim Dandy, pretty much in that order.

I’m also a Dad, a husband, a sculptor, a painter, a candlestick maker, and maybe ADHD.

2. How did you get your start?

Very slowly, one small step at a time. In relationship to Art, I pretty much snuck in through the backdoor.

3. What inspires you?

I’ve been fascinated with illustration and painting for as long as I can remember, but I didn’t get around to making much of anything until I was well into my twenties. What really started the juices flowing was the gallery scene in Chicago. Google Jim Nutt and Roger Brown … kick ass artists. Their sort of irreverent funky imagery started my addiction to image making.

John Randall Nelson

4. What do you like about Arizona?

The summers are especially nice.

5. Where can we see you(r) work?

Gebert Contemporary in Scottsdale and FP Contemporary in LA are two of the galleries that represent my work.

I’m also at whonelson.com and bobojohns.com … or just google John Randall Nelson or Bobo Johns.

6. What would you like to accomplish before you die?

I would like to do a Public Art commission in Arizona that has a 1,000,000.00 budget …seriously.

7. What’s your mantra?

I can’t say my mantra out loud. I thought everybody knew that. You can’t uncover the seed once it is planted … that’s how it was explained to me. Besides, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi would turn over in his grave and I’d probably lose both my hard won enlightenment and my ability to levitate.

I do like what Bobo Johns keeps telling me, “No masterpiece was ever created by a lazy artist”.