Meet Sarah Nelson | Artist + Illustrator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sarah Nelson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sarah, how does your business help the community?
My work as an illustrator and fine artist is centered on the natural world. Habitats, flora, fauna, ecology – the interconnectivity of living things and our planet never ceases to inspire me! My career started as a fine artist illustrating endangered wildlife and ecological data. This work continues but has also evolved into something more collaborative! I have begun to use these skills to illustrate for clients! One of my favorite ways that this work has engaged communities is my partnership with the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota and their Sustainable Communities Partnership. We worked with student and faculty research to create illustrated guides! These guides and public art projects have empowered students and the neighborhoods surrounding the university to explore the native trees, native pollinators, as well as medicinal plants that are grown on campus! The Pollinator Guide has been picked up by other institutions in the city, including the Mississippi Watershed and the Walker Arts Sculpture Garden to help visitors engage with native plants and the the environment in a new way!

Using art as a bridge in a time when our planet is changing really rapidly, has been a really exciting way to create new spaces for important and beautiful conversations that inspire curiosity and sometimes even create space for real change. My most recent endeavor has been an artist residency in the Arctic Circle. I spent two weeks on a tall ship, the Antigua, with artists and scientists from around the world, learning about the Arctic and exploring it and creating in response to it. This is leading to more collaborations with other artists and scientists, but also with organizations like byHumankind and Askov, both retailers who are focused on transforming our systems and communities to care for our earth in better ways. It is such a joy to work with other artists, institutions, and companies that are working to engage their communities in new ways. I am learning so much in the process. I love this work. Art on it’s own wont save the planet, but I am excited to see what else is possible when we work together.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I don’t think I would ever say that being or becoming any form of artist is easy, but I will say that it has been and continues to be a really rich road to travel on. I think one of my favorite parts of being an independent illustrator and artist is that I am constantly put into situations where I have to grow and learn and navigate the discomfort of the unknown. I often get emails asking if I can do x, y, or z- usually things I haven’t done before. By leaning into these inquiries, I have had the chance to learn to paint murals, basic levels of animation, how to create wraps for public transportation. I have also learned about endangered species, the interconnectivity of native plants, pollinators, and our agricultural systems, the Arctic warming and a more in-depth reality of the global affect it is having, etc. There is endless amounts of learning to be done, and I love that about this work! It is never boring!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I absolutely love this city and the nature that surrounds it! One of my greatest joys is introducing people to the gems I have found and come to love by living here. So when a loved one comes to visit a trip usually includes: Coffee (I love coffee) at Go Get ‘Em Tiger or Sightglass, donuts at Trejos (as someone with a fairly severe egg allergy, their vegan donuts are a pure dream!), dinners at Formosa Cafe, In-N-Out, Honeybee, Pink Pepper, and some taco trucks. For entertainment we’d be sure to book a comedy show at Dynasty Typewriter, a movie in the park or at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery! To see more of the beautiful outdoors, we’d include some hikes like the Captains Roost trail in Griffith or the Piuma Trail in Calabasas, a stroll through the Huntington Botanical Gardens, a proper beach day at Zuma, and day trip up Hwy 1 or to Joshua tree. My partner and I love to camp, so if the visitor is adventurous, we may take them to one of the Channel Islands or Big Pine Creek for some camping too!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Honestly, I feel incredibly lucky to have had a wildly encouraging partner, family and community around me. My core people have been the voices and strength that kept me going. There are too many to mention all of them by name! My top shoutout has to go to my love, John Mark Nelson. He is insanely talented, hard working, fun-loving, as well as grounded patient, and wise. We’ve been through a lot together as two independent artists (he is an artist, producer, and songwriter) and he has always encouraged me and believed in my work. He would always encourage me to keep pushing even when others thought we were crazy. He is a huge inspiration to me and I am so lucky to have him by my side in the rollercoaster that is a creative life.

The other big ol’ shout out has to go to my family. The people I get to call family, are some of the coolest and most inspiring people I know. They are all insanely talented and will celebrate everything little thing with you, but also be there to hear about the hard stuff too. It is an incredible gift to have them in my life.

Website: sarahnelson.art

Instagram: @Sarah_ann_nelson

Other: Behance: https://www.behance.net/sarahannnelson

Image Credits
Dane Pedersen (for the two train images exterior and interior)