After a short stay in Mexico, Nelio headed to Ostende in Belgium invited to participate in this year’s The Crystal Ship festival, an event that counted with the participation of talented artists like Axel Void, Henrik Uldalen, the Outings Project, Johannes Mundinger, Jaune, Hyuro, Pastel, Bue The Warrior, Alexis Díaz, Bosoletti, Phlegm, C215 Buck and Schellekens.
Making use of his signature imagery, composed of carefully interconnected geometrical shapes in an interesting interplay of flatness and depth, Nelio creates unique pieces that express a distinctive visual language.
During his last trip to Mexico his style experimented small changes, showing a more expressive approach to painting and the painted surface. The characteristic flatness of his geometric compositions diminishes. At the same time that they become less flat, they also acquire more depth and become therefore more connected to the painted surface, trespassing each other in a continuous motion of perceptual illusions and reference games, involving the viewer is unwittingly involved into a further reality, where the background and figures constantly ‘veil’ and ‘unveil’. This approach, clear in his Mexico walls, is less prominent in this new mural, but still visible.
As mentioned earlier occasions , Nelio’s work is not only rooted in graffiti, but it also includes references to graphic design, ancient hieroglyphs, the surrounding architecture and environment when it comes to walls, as well as fine art movements such as Suprematism, Cubism, Dadaism, Surrealism, De Stijl, Bauhaus and Op Art. Influences that are clearly visible in his work.
About Nelio
Born in 1982, Nelio is originally from the East of France, he began doing graffiti in the late 90s. Influenced by graphic design, illustration, photography and architecture, this self-taught artist lives and works in Lyon, nourishing his artistic practice of his numerous travels and encounters on the way. During the past years he has developed a paradoxically minimalist and complex graphic universe that explore different media. The result is an interesting body of work that, composed of purified symbols, primary geometric shapes, and sometimes letters, landscapes or facial features, offer a playful insight into his creative universe.
All images by Ian Cox www.wallkandy.net
More about Nelio on facebook | instagram | flickr
Author: Fran
Founder and editor of Urbanite. Street Art lover who after the finishing her MA thesis on the Mexican and Norwegian muralist movement in the 1920-50s, developed a fascination for street art and graffiti that eventually led to collaborations with different art blogs, including the creation of this one.
