R. NELSON PARRISH

The world of abstract art and the world of high-speed sports rarely seem to mingle, but the work of R. Nelson Parrish is a strong testament to the fact that perhaps they should.

Parrish’s perspective is fresh and intense He captures the magical, hyper-focused moments of tranquility that the human body experiences while driving a racecar at breakneck speeds, or flying down an Alpine ski course. Athletes describe these moments as being “in the zone”; for Parrish, these moments are about passion and are the ultimate evidence of being alive—and they are his muses.

An Alaska native and dual resident of Santa Barbara and Berlin, Parrish draws from the adrenaline-filled experiences he loves: skiing, auto racing and surfing. He uses racing stripes, colorful resin, wood and fiberglass to create vivid polished hybrids—part sculptures, part paintings—that captivate and summon the viewer to focus straight ahead and eliminate the periphery.

Parrish’s work is included in personal collections of Rob Lowe, John Legend and Andrew Firestone, among other notable anthologies. It has also been featured in museums and solo exhibitions, including BMW Welt; The Kimball Art Center; Museum of Art & History, Lancaster, CA; Santa Monica Museum of Art; Museum of Art & History, Santa Cruz, CA; Galerie Nobel, Oslo, Norway; Telluride Gallery of Fine Art; Art, Design and Architecture Museum, University of California-Santa Barbara and Galerie Hegemann in Munich, Germany.