Nelson Gutierrez is a Colombian-American multidisciplinary artist living in Memphis, TN. He holds a BA in Fine Arts from Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano in Bogota, Colombia, and a Master’s degree in Fine Arts from Chelsea College of Art and Design in London, UK.

His work comprises two- and three-dimensional artworks based on current sociopolitical issues and personal memories.

Gutierrez’s work has been exhibited around the US and internationally in Colombia, the UK, and Switzerland, and is part of private and public collections.

He has participated in residencies at Crosstown Arts in Memphis, TN, and the Vermont Studio Center. He is a recipient of the Tri-Star Arts Current Art Fund Grant (2023), the Individual Artist Fellowship of the Tennessee Arts Commission (FY25), and the South Arts Tennessee Fellow for Visual Arts (2024).

Nelson Gutierrez has served as an Exhibition Committee Member for the Brooks Museum of Arts, an Artist Advisory Council Member at ArtsMemphis, and an Official Advisor for Locate Arts in Nashville, TN. He is the Founder of Future Project Art, formerly 2021 Projects, a Contemporary Art collective dedicated to increasing the awareness for, appreciation of, and involvement in the visual arts in the Mid-South.

My work involves two- and three-dimensional pieces, conceptual objects, and installations that reflect current sociopolitical issues and personal memories related to history or contemporary events.

My studio practice is based on years of research and personal observation. I explore various artistic mediums, all centered around a common theme: the ongoing struggle of individuals and communities for a better life. My work emphasizes resilience, hope, and the search for common ground. Both personal and collective memories inform my work, influenced by the people I have encountered, the places I have lived and visited, and the events that have shaped my life and career.

The images I have included are from the recent series “A Journey into the Shadows.” This work is based on forced displacement and global migration, it uses tridimensional cutout drawings, mechanical movement, and different sources of light, exploring the practice of drawing in ways that transcend its traditional boundaries.

Using formal elements of drawing, the 3D works in this series depict walking individuals, which, with lights, cast overlapping shadows that create masses of abstract shapes. This effect presents a flexible, alternate world that can constantly be modified, drawn, and redrawn.

Figures in motion appear and dissolve, shifting between recognition and anonymity. These forms—walking, carrying, moving forward—speak to the experience of those who leave behind their homes in search of a brighter future. My use of shadow and movement evokes both the erasure and resilience of displaced communities.

With “A Journey into the Shadows,” I aim to create a haunting reflection on migration, displacement, and the fragile nature of human existence.