Scott Nelles

"My life revolves around my art in three dimensions."

Scott Nelles (pronounced nell-ess) creates cast bronze sculpture using the trades of industry. Much of the inspiration for his work actually comes from the process in which he makes it. Cast metal toy cars, boats, and airplanes take him back to his childhood in Detroit, where his father, a manufacturer's representative, would take Scott on factory tours. The dramatic sight and heat of molten metal became a part of his soul, and the excitement of the foundry process has never left him.

Many people are aware of the lost-wax method of creating bronze castings and sculpture. Scott Nelles, on the other hand, creates his art by using the lesser-known sand-casting method. This process is seldom used in the arts, and very few are aware of its possibilities. Nelles takes advantage of this process to express his artistic visions and also to make his art more accessible to the public.

Faced with uncontrollable ambition, Nelles dropped out of art school and traveled across the country until he ended up in Seattle, WA, in 1972. Seattle was home to several small foundries. With the help of these foundries, he was able to gain a knowledge base that finally allowed him to open his own facility back in his home state of Michigan.