Rock Paintings

An ongoing painting series developed from Nelson's photographs of geological formations in Monument Valley, Picacho Peak, the Aeolian Islands, Careyes and other locations. Early experiments with heavy acrylic gave way to poured, soaked and physically manipulated acrylic on raw or backed linen, allowing surface tension and absorption to become active compositional forces. The rocks are not treated simply as landscape subjects. They operate as characters, thresholds and seemingly animate presences, objects that remain mute while suggesting an interior life. The series marked a return to sustained painting after years dominated by collaborative and architectural work.