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I am a big fan of surrealist art because it is a unique reflection of the artist’s mind and creativity. Every artist has their own story, style and imagination that influence the creation of their world and ultimately their artwork. Suffice to say that I totally dig the world Nathan Ota creates.

As with a lot of artists, Nathan mixes some dark elements with the positive. In his painting On My Mind, the central character is a seemingly sad looking tree girl with a dunce hat which certainly sounds gloomy. He contrasts that mood with a very bright pink sky and sparkling stars as well as an upward growing branches with bright berry-like circles that evoke a positive mood.

I also enjoyed his bio on his website quite a bit because he summarizes his influences but also discusses how he got to his main passion which was illustrations. Nathan was always into drawing and heavily influenced by cartoons, comic books and punk rock flyers. He was heavy into graffiti during high school and was able to tie everything together in college with illustrations. You can clearly see all of those influences in his artwork which helps us understand where his world is coming from. He mentions that classic art never really spoke to him and I totally get that. I respect and like some classic things whether it be art or music, but I tend to be drawn to modern styles.

I hope everyone visits his site and see more of his work because it is really inspiring. Nathan has a specific style and uses similar elements in a lot of his art, but it’s amazing how they’re all different. It goes to show, there’s a lot you can do in our crazy little world!