Today we’d like to introduce you to Nestor Toro.
Nestor, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I am originally from Puerto Rico but now Los Angeles is home after living here for years. I always loved art but never created any myself until I first picked up a brush when I was living in Buenos Aires Argentina. I am totally self-taught. Some may think that an academic background in art is a necessary to be an artist, I disagree. While technique can be learned, true creativity comes from within and you either have it or you don’t.
I first started with watercolor on paper creating small works and over the course of living in Buenos Aires for 6 years evolved to larger and larger canvases and using acrylic paint. I experimented with the medium and developed my own unique methods of painting giving my work a quality distinctly my own. When I moved back to L.A. in 2013 I had over 300 canvases to ship back to California!
After returning to West Hollywood I continued painting and started showing at various venues and selling my work online on multiple platforms. Selling my work online galleries allows me to reach a huge audience of art lovers I could never reach with traditional galleries and as a result I have artwork in collections on 5 continents and in over 20 countries.
I recently returned from India. A collector flew me there as he was a fan of my work and wanted to commission me to do all of the artwork for his new home. It was a unique opportunity and is one of the reasons that I love being a working artist in Los Angeles – you never know what the day will bring!
Not long ago I did a commission for a collector with a beautiful home in the Hollywood hills. I am often contacted by collectors who tell me they have a huge wall they need artwork for and I have had many collectors visit my studio space to buy artwork in person which is always exciting being so much more personal. There are so many great artists and art collectors here in Los Angeles I am honored to know my artwork is hanging in so many L.A. homes and offices!
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I am an abstract artist and the art I create is intended to transport the viewer to a mental landscape of contemplation with balance and color. I have found that getting out of your “comfort zone” is the only way to learn, be challenged, and to grow.
One of my biggest influences is travel. I have a passion for travel because it opens up your mind and frees the imagination to new experiences. This is especially true for international travel. Getting lost in a huge city and exploring. I want my artwork to mentally challenge the viewer and make give them an experience be it emotional or intellectual.
Some of the things that influence my art are nature and organic patterns such as smoke, water, magnetic fields, even observing the way flocks of birds and schools of fish move in unison influence me. The dichotomy of randomness and order existing at the same moment are what I try to capture and yet with a complexity that might appear random but is anything but because nothing is really absolute black and white.
How do you think about success, as an artist, and what do quality do you feel is most helpful?
I would say that success comes when an artist is pleased with their own work. It is one thing for your art to be recognized as being good but what does that mean. It is very subjective…which is a good thing. Art is much too important to be limited by an ultimate judge of what is the “best” or who is the “best.”
Success to me is when I am happy with my work. That is the only time I put it out there for sale. Real success comes when a collector contacts me after being so moved by one of my works that they want to own it. I also feel success when I am commissioned by a collector to create a special work just for them. It takes a lot of trust and confidence and I don’t know what could better define success more than that and that certainly makes me feel successful and also very honored.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
The best place to see my work is at my personal website. NestorToro.com
There you can view my artwork and even buy it if you are so motivated. I also sell online on the major online gallery platforms. My upcoming events are listed on my website as well as past shows.
I have many events in the works for 2018. Most recently I participated in “The Other Art Fair” in March which was held at The Majestic in the art district here in Los Angeles art district. What an amazing venue and what an honor being one of just 98 artists be show there.
I also have visitors to my studio space from time to time. Information on a studio visit can be found on my website!
Here is a dedicated link to information on the event on my site: https://nestortoro.com/nestor-toro-the-other-art-fair-los-angeles-march-2018/
Contact Info:
- Address: West Hollywood
- Website: https://nestortoro.com/
- Phone: 2137184011
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nestortoroart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nestortoroLA
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/NestorToroArt
- Other: https://pureabstractions.com/
Image Credit:
Lee Chapman
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
