For veteran artist Nelson Castillo, painting is a process of translation. The works for “Of Boundless Depths and Heights” is the artist’s rendition of peaceful tranquility which convey distinct moods— hopeful, somber, mystical, and reminiscent; a depiction of a fleeting instant of something beyond. For Castillo, his prolific life experiences, memories, and even remembered details from the past are part of his artistic process. He narrates that certain themes are recurrent in his works, which the artist considers as integral parts of his psyche that resonate with the world.
“Of Boundless Depths and Heights” is hinged on coastal landscapes and the ways in which these environments can be transcended, viewed, and understood– as Nelson Castillo continues to push the medium of paint back to its essence. It is his response to remembered experiences, fragments of time, sounds, color, movement; a recreation of a boundless place considered deeply personal.
The interplay between land and sky, the horizon and water, and the balance between elements is what captivates Castillo. The notion that a space can be shared harmoniously is revealed in his paintings, expressed in an idealized viewpoint. It is the elegance of nature that Nelson Castillo is called to express rather than its destruction; the righteousness of the earth rather than peril of its existence.
Nelson Castillo is an internationally renowned Filipino-American artist who began painting miniatures in 1968. He was noted as the “Father of Miniature Painting” in the Philippines in 1979. His paintings grace prestigious hotels like the Manila Peninsula, Philippine Village, Holiday Inn, Hilton, and the Grand Boulevard Hotel. He was honored with the “Artist of the Year” award at the Virgo Awards (November 2000), Pamana Awards (October 2002), and Reflections XIV in California (November 2002). Nelson Castillo has earned more than 100 awards and recognitions from countless local and national art competitions and award-giving bodies.
