Nelson’s art is included in the permanent collections of many major museums: The Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, the University of Texas, Texas, the Seattle Art Museum, Washington, Ohio University, Ohio, the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, the DeCordova Museum, Boston, the Brooklyn Museum, New York, the North Carolina Art Museum, North Carolina, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minnesota, the University of Minnesota Morris, Minnesota, the Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio, the University of Maryland, Maryland, the Rourke Art Museum, Minnesota, Millersville University, Pennsylvania, George Mason University, Virginia, the University of Manitoba, Canada, the Plains Art Museum, North Dakota.
He was also the recipient of the prestigious Purchase Prize in the 31st National Exhibition of Boston Printmakers and was awarded the Cezanne medal from the government of France, in 1961.
You can see the things that influence Bob including past Presidents and historical figures, the Wizard of Oz, Flash Gordon, classic fables, and mythology. You can also find many animals, including some from his homestead in Lakeside, Oregon which he shares with his lovely wife Louise.
"Drawing is the First Art- Everything else springs from that." ~ Robert A Nelson.
*** Many museums are suspected, both Nationally and Internationally, and we are convinced this list is incomplete. If you would like to add to the list, please contact the Gallery.
Pease note* The valuations span placement from 2010 - 2022 with a steady or rapid increase with no decline in value seen.
ROBERT A. NELSON
1925–2021
*Karen Anderer Fine Art has represented Robert Allen Nelson since 2010 and is the exclusive representative of the Robert Allen Nelson Estate and of his wife, Louise Schintz-Nelson.
“Drawing is the First Art, everything else springs from that.” ~ Robert A. Nelson
Robert A. Nelson was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1925. He studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, receiving a Bachelor of Art Education degree in 1950 and a Master of Art Education degree in 1951. He later earned a Doctor of Education degree from New York University in 1971.
Nelson taught at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the University of Manitoba and the University of North Dakota. In 1972, he joined the faculty of Cleveland State University, where he taught until 1975. He subsequently taught at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill before joining the faculty of Millersville University. Millersville granted him the rank of professor emeritus in 1997.
Nelson worked across drawing, printmaking, painting, collage and sculpture. His meticulously rendered, surreal compositions combine American history, mythology, popular culture, animals and machinery with an unmistakably dark and playful sense of humor. Among his many influences were Leonardo da Vinci, past presidents and historical figures, classical mythology, traditional fables, Flash Gordon and The Wizard of Oz.
In 1962, Nelson’s work was included in the Museum of Modern Art exhibition “Recent Painting U.S.A.: The Figure.” His painting “Gettysburg Horses” was later selected for the American Federation of Arts traveling exhibition “Fifty Artists from Fifty States,” which circulated from March 1966 through May 1967.
Nelson received the Purchase Prize in the 31st National Exhibition of the Boston Printmakers and was awarded the Cézanne Medal. His work has been exhibited nationally and internationally.
VERIFIED MUSEUM AND INSTITUTIONAL COLLECTIONS
Nelson’s work is documented in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art; Smithsonian American Art Museum; National Gallery of Art; Seattle Art Museum; Walker Art Center; deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum; Brooklyn Museum; North Carolina Museum of Art; Minneapolis Institute of Art; Cleveland Museum of Art; Blanton Museum of Art at the University of Texas at Austin; Rourke Art Gallery + Museum; Millersville University; University of Manitoba; Plains Art Museum; Chazen Museum of Art at the University of Wisconsin–Madison; Madison Museum of Contemporary Art; and Krannert Art Museum at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
ADDITIONAL COLLECTIONS RECORDED BY THE GALLERY
(The following institutions are included in the gallery’s historical records, but independent institutional verification is still pending: Lancaster Museum of Art; Ohio University; University of Minnesota Morris; University of Maryland; George Mason University; Dahl Arts Center; Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art at Kansas State University; and Colorado State University.)
Nelson’s varied experiences—as a cartographer, book illustrator, meatpacking-plant tour guide, teacher, herdsman and military serviceman—fed the imaginative journeys found throughout his work. His precisely drawn worlds are populated by historical figures, mythological characters, machines, horses, dogs, birds and other animals, often placed in scenes that are simultaneously humorous, unsettling and deeply human.
After retiring from teaching, Nelson lived and worked in Lakeside, Oregon with his wife Louise and their many animals at their homestead, Zeppelin Farm. He continued producing art throughout his life, remaining committed to craftsmanship, imagination and the power of drawing.
“I hope people find it interesting. I like to amaze them a little bit—the dark humor disturbs them in many cases. You have to look at it, and you have to think about it.”
—Robert A. Nelson
“If I had to name one artist that most influenced him it would be da Vinci… but of course, da Vinci didn’t have the Nelson sense of humor… It’s funny as hell.” ~Chick Kozloff, author, art collector
Robert A. Nelson died at his home in Lakeside, Oregon, on December 2, 2021. He was 96. His work continues to reward prolonged looking, revealing the extraordinary imagination and technical ability of an artist who devoted his life to drawing.
Announcement: We Grieve. It is with my deepest sadness that I inform you of the passing of Dr. Nelson on December 2, 2021