Endangered wildlife sculpture archive of Jess Nelson, artist and muralist.

This is a photo collection of works by the artist. The bas relief above, titled "1945", was created in 1963 and exhibited at Design West. This on-line gallery is for collectors of original and limited edition works by the artist. The photos below were submitted by private collectors of Jess' drawings, paintings and sculptural works.

The twenty sterling silver sculptures from the "Endangered Wildlife Series" were mounted on mineral bases. These pieces, distributed by Mineralia of California, were unique in the use of fine crystallized minerals as bases. The company went out of business in 1979. The edition was never completed and the molds were destroyed making the few works that were produced very rare. In the later years of production, it became difficult to locate fine mineral bases for the silver sculptures. The editions never did reach the 500 limit indicated on the signature plates. There were no more than 50 of each design ever produced and the first ten numbers were were never issued. Each sculpture is numbered an signed by the artist on a sterling silver cast and stamped base plate.

The "Silver Stallion" and "Sterling Justice" are sterling silver on pyrite and quartz bases finished in 1974. Both are in private collections. The Sterling Silver Buck # EWS 07 24/500 is mounted on conachalcite w/calcite from Durango, Mexico and is in the private collection of G. Coffman.

BRONZE ORIGINALS

From the Jess Nelson Art Archive collection. Photo by j.blanding

This seven inch bronze "Brown Pelican" on petrified wood base is one of three bronze large pelicans produced in 1977. A few bronze sculptures were created during these years and are a rare find. All of the original works were produced by the lost wax process in silver or bronze. It is not known if any of the original bronze sculptures were mounted and sold.

GOLD PLATED SCULPTURES

The 24K gold-plated white metal sculptures were produced from 1977 to 1978 as "affordable" collectibles. Five series of works were produced. Thousands of these small sculptures, distributed by Mineralia, were sold around the world in galleries and gift shops. There were 15 sculptures in the "Wild Kingdom Series", 32 in the "Aquatic Series", 4 in the "Hawaiian Series" and 4 in the "Sports Series". Early pieces were mounted on onyx and real stone. Later works were placed on cast stone. Starlight Originals casting foundry in Los Angeles cast and plated the small sculptures ranging from 3 to 6 inches tall. The artist assembled the castings and bases at The Art Works in Orange County, California.

The "Humpback Whale and Calf" on lace coral was finished in 1978, one of the last larger designs in 24k gold-plated white metal. The mother humpback is 5 inches long. This piece is from the P. Mattson collection. The "Gold Mustang" is from the the "Wild Kingdom Series". This piece is mounted on a cast rock and is from the Jess Nelson Art Archive collection. The large pelican is mounted on onyx and is from the A. Frech colllection recently found in a thrift store in Victoria British Columbia on Vancouver Island.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXFrom the Jess Nelson Art Archive collection.

The "King Kameamea", "Hula Dancer" and "Sword Dancer" are from the Hawaiian Series. These 4 inch sculptures, mounted on lava rock, were sold exclusively in Hawaii along with the "Aquatic Series". The "Skier" on white onyx was from the "Sports Series". All three are from the Jess Nelson Art Archive collection. The small "Pelican" was part of that series. All the sculptures were accompanied with a card that described the piece.

ORIGINAL ARTWORK 1980's
Styrographic Block Prints
One-of-a-kind graphic studies by the artist.

xxxxxxx
"Steady", "Oak "and "Pelican" Three original Styrographic block prints by Jess executed in 1985.

Watercolor and Ink

Impressed by the rural western setting in North Texas around 1980, Jess did a series of watercolor and ink sketches. All are originals and in private collections. Here are a few from the Jess Nelson Art Archive collection.

Note to Art Collectors:

Any collector visiting this site that may know the location of any of the above mentioned works please contact the curator of the Jess Nelson Art Archives. If you are the owner of any one of Jess Nelson's early paintings or sculptures, we invite you to contact the curator for information about your artwork.

E-mail : Curator, Jess Nelson Art Archive

Home Page ... Biography ... Portfolio