Neto Atkinson - Biography
With Art I learn about myself from myself.
I’m a revolutionary of color and an alchemist of the paint brush.
- Neto Atkinson
Neto Atkinson
Neto (Ernesto) Atkinson is a Guatemalan-born American painter born on June 11th, 1981. In 2007 Atkinson began his artistic training and received a BFA from North Dakota State University and a master’s degree from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago with a Master of Arts in Art Therapy in 2014.
Neto Atkinson is known professionally as Ernesto Atkinson in the Mental Health field of art therapy where he uses art as a way to become a witness to his participant's personal growth by engaging in an adaptive and creative path of self-exploration.
Neto’s passion for art and art making grew out of his desire to capture awe and wonder on his canvas. He is a revolutionary of color and an alchemist of the paintbrush; a gardener of artistic seeds, that explores the neutrality of things in their natural state. He has demonstrated an extraordinary artistic talent as he embarks on every new journey to different cultures, exploring his understanding of the human connection and art, which solidifies his belief that art is and active agent of change.
Neto is an exceptionally prolific painter whose creative achievements and revolutionary artistic accomplishments focus on the representation of the contemporary movement of his own existence and experience. His artistic representations are based on his daily life, and on his own philosophy. Neto is considered a colorful poet who leaves a message of peace, love, wonder and awe with each color and stroke on a canvas.
Artist Statement
As a child of the world, art is my indigenous lengua. I am a revolutionary of color and an alchemist of the paintbrush. My approach is born from an innate dialect that I call The Not Yet Language of an Idea. In this language, form and color are a vernacular to learn from myself, about myself, and the world within me.
My approach is a meticulous ritual that begins by building my own canvas; from planing wood, to stretching the canvas, to adding the layer of gesso. The gesso builds the muscle memory for my native gestures in the application of the oil paint. In this way I breathe life into The Not Yet Language of an Idea as it evolves into my unique lengua, initiated from a sketch.
The subject of my work has shifted from concepts about human rights, politics, and religion to an ever-evolving reflection of my direct experiences, emotions, and the human condition.
My work samples are a testament to the alchemical power of expression that is innately within us all, and my connection with a universal language, belonging not to me, but to all of life.