Space Art by Nicole Pellegrini

I've heard this piece described as "jellyfish in space", which is somewhat appropriate. Like many of my astronomical pieces, I did not begin it with a specific idea in mind, merely laying down some dark color washes, adding a little gouache white and grey, and then seeing what evolved. This piece was definitely inspired by Tanguy and Powers' work, both of whom I'd been immersing myself in for a few weeks before beginning the painting. I seriously adore much of the classic scifi art found on the pulp paperbacks of the 50s through the early 70s, which I think you'll get a sense of as you browse the other paintings in this gallery.

I know the title of this painting is a little odd for a work of astronomical art, yet I felt it was somehow quite appropriate. There's a static peace and tranquility to this image that I like.

I never can predict exactly how one of these paintings will come out when I begin them as the process is so organic and unplanned, and sometimes they work and sometimes they don't. This was one of those times it worked really well, I thought.

This image is a more "traditional" piece of space art although it still began as an abstract color wash of reds, yellows and blues. I built up several layers of washes before starting to see an interesting effect emerge, and then I added the rugged landscape, stars and planets to complete the painting.

This is another piece greatly inspired by Yves Tanguy and his fantastical, surreal landscapes. There's also perhaps a touch of abstract expressionism in this one, the thin lines of paint applied in a fast manner similar to Jackson Pollock. This is one of my personal favorite pieces of surreal/space art that I've completed to date.

Many of my astronomical watercolors take many days or weeks to complete. This piece was an exception to that general rule. The landscape of rough terrain and fiery skies began to reveal itself quickly as I laid down my very first color washes, so I attempted to complete this piece in just one session before the watercolor had dried and become unworkable. I only returned to it once to define some of the mountain peaks and add a touch of opaque color in the foreground.

Dark, toxic smoke rises from a bleak landscape as alien craft set out for safety. This painting evolved over many sessions, a story beginning to take place as I experimented with paint drips, washes and different shapes.

This is one of my very "retro" pieces, inspired heavily by the wonderful science fiction art of the science fiction pulp paperbacks of the past. I grew up reading those books and always was drawn to the ones with the most intriguing cover art first.

The last piece I'm including here is a real winner - truly! It won the 2006 Dragon*Con Attendee award for "Best Spaceship or Space Scene". Given how large Dragon*Con is and how many artists exhibit there, this was indeed a tremendous honor to me.