Art as a Dialogue on Environmental Urgency

with Laura Bernardeschi Nelson | Mixed Media & Oil Pastel Artist – Newcastle upon Tyne

For sale on

www.saatchiart.com/lauraartist68

https://www.artmajeur.com/laurabernardeschinelson

Open to commissions too

Artist Laura Bernardeschi Nelson is a prolific mixed-media artist, author, and former life model based in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. Originally from Italy, she previously worked and exhibited under her maiden name, Laura Bernardeschi. Her vibrant and emotionally charged work is deeply influenced by her Italian heritage and a commitment to social and environmental themes.

Biography and Artistic Journey

Laura Bernardeschi Nelson embarked on her artistic career in 2017, using painting as a therapeutic outlet to navigate and overcome personal challenges. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in art from Pisa University, Italy. Before focusing solely on her painting, Nelson had a diverse career as a life model, actress, and photographer in London and Bristol. These past experiences provided her with an intuitive understanding of human form and light, which informs her current artistic practice.

Her style combines bold, expressive colors with a focus on human emotion and nature. Influences are drawn from Renaissance masters like Caravaggio for their dramatic lighting, and modern artists such as Van Gogh, Picasso, and Klimt for their color palettes and emotional depth. Themes such as climate change, personal healing, and resilience are central to her work.

Books and Publications

Laura Bernardeschi Nelson is a published author, and her books are often available via online retailers like Amazon UK:

  • Mixed Media and Climate Awareness: Laura’s Impactful Art: Examines how art can be a powerful voice for environmental issues.
  • Paper and Fire: An Artist’s Journey Through Change: A memoir detailing her personal transformation and journey with art.
  • The Pose That Hurt: Becoming an Artist Through Life Modeling and Rebellion: A reflection on her experiences as a life model and how it shaped her artistic identity.
  • Laura Bernardeschi artworks.: The best artworks of this original and versatile artist: A catalogue showcasing a collection of her artworks.
  • I’m happy to share that my work has just been featured in Insights of an Eco Artist in an article titled “Debris and Restoration: Laura Bernardeschi Nelson’s Material Ecology,” which explores my use of North Sea sand, seaweed, debris and mixed media to create what the author calls “physical archives of environmental harm,” and reflects on how my practice weaves together climate anxiety, mental health, and quiet, restorative landscapes; you can read the full feature here: Debris and Restoration: Laura Bernardeschi Nelson’s Material Ecology.

Her artwork and story have also been featured in magazines such as Vogue (as part of a gallery exhibition feature), Odyssey Global Media, Artist Closeup, Goddess Art Magazine, and in the Cista Arts book Nature’s Canvas: Exploring the Diversity and Beauty of the Natural World.

Selected Exhibitions

Nelson has an extensive exhibition history across the UK and internationally, exhibiting under both her married and maiden names.

UK Exhibitions:

  • NewBridge Project, Newcastle upon Tyne: Group exhibition, 2024.
  • Redcar Palace, Redcar: ‘Part Feline-Thropic’ exhibition, a charity show for animals, 2024.
  • Chilli Studio, Newcastle: Participated in a fundraiser and art auction for a local charity, 2024.
  • The Gallery, Shipley: “Self portrait makes me smile” and “Poetry makes me smile” exhibitions, 2023.
  • Chinwe Russell Art Gallery, London: ‘Artists on the Rise’ online auction and exhibition, 2023.
  • Onca Gallery, Brighton: ‘We, the human’ exhibition, 2023.
  • Open Gallery, Halifax: Multiple exhibitions including ‘Winter reflections’, 2023.
  • Orchard Cafe, London: Early exhibitions in 2018.
  • Art Gallery DU808, Bristol: Group exhibition, 2019.

International Exhibitions:

  • The Artbox Project Venezia 2024: Selected for an exhibition during the Venice Biennale.
  • Collect Art, Tbilisi, Georgia: Multiple exhibitions, 2023-2024.
  • Barbagelata Contemporary Art Foundation, Barcelona, Spain: ‘Nature’ exhibition, 2023.
  • Brouhahaart Gallery, Hong Kong: ‘Women only’ online event, 2023.
  • Virtual exhibition in Dresden, Germany: ‘Abstraction’ online exhibition, 2024.

Merits and Awards

Laura Bernardeschi Nelson has received recognition for her work:

  • Certificate of Artistic Achievement: Awarded by the Luxembourg Art Prize in both 2022 and 2023.
  • Certificate of Artistic Merit: For the ‘Nature’ exhibition hosted by the Barbagelata Contemporary Art Foundation in Barcelona.

Climate Change

My work explores the delicate balance between human creation and ecological decline. Through mixed media, found objects, recycled plastic, oil pastels, spray paint, and acrylic colours, I transform discarded materials into poetic reflections on the changing climate.

Each piece speaks to the fragility of life within polluted environments — ocean creatures dissolving into translucent layers, corroded textures suggesting melting ice or vanishing landscapes. The contrast between luminous colour and industrial waste mirrors the tension between beauty and destruction.

By reimagining waste as part of the visual language, I aim to confront the viewer with both the wonder and the urgency of the natural world. My art becomes a dialogue between resilience and loss — a visual archive of our shared environmental memory.

If interested to buy one of my artwork please send me an email through

lauraartist68@gmail.com