We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nathaniel Alphonse Joseph Landry. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nathaniel Alphonse Joseph below.
Hi Nathaniel Alphonse Joseph, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.
I was teaching Middle School Art and two Art classes at southern University as an Adjunct Professor in the Fine Arts department when the Pandemic hit back in 2021. I was extremely nervous and cautious about being in the classroom because my father was dealing with the after effects of a stroke he had in the summer of 2018 and was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer at the time. I rarely missed work and had accumulated close to two and a half months of paid leave off, so I took a leave of absence because I didn’t want to catch Covid and accidentally give it to my father while taking him to doctor’s appointments and physical therapy.
During this time off, I had time to really evaluate my life. I was running myself ragged working two teaching jobs AND creating art and participating in shows. One evening I was going through some books that my late mother left me and saw a quote she wrote on the the last page. It said, “Oh the places you’ll go -Nathaniel have a happy life.” The quote stayed on my thoughts for the rest of the evening into the late hours of the night. I asked myself, ” Have I had a happy life or have I just been existing?”
I never took a chance on myself and truly went for my dream of being a full time artist. I prayed about it, gave my worries up to God and fell asleep peacefully, which was quite shocking and surprising. In the morning I had the strongest resolve to jump into the fire and chase this crazy dream. I contacted both jobs and took out a early retirement and embarked on a journey that lasted two years with me fatefully meeting my current business partner and curator Keidrick Alford of Ellemnop Art where my art projects and career jumped to a whole new level.
Although I’m back teaching art at two schools in the Talented Arts Program in East Baton Rouge Parish, my friendship and business relationship with Keidrick is still going strong and together we are shaking up the art scene in Baton Rouge with many creative projects and art events.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m a freelance artist who makes afrofuturistic, abstract and multimedia art. My longtime love for anime, manga and comic books is reflected in my work’s bright colors, hard lines and imaginative characters illustrated on skateboards, wooden planks and canvases.
I have pursued art my entire life. My father was an artist, and my mother was an educator and a singer that supported my passions and pushed me into my gift. As a child, I often went to museums, summer camps and comic book stores.
I received my bachelor’s degree in fine art from Southern University and my master’s in sequential arts at the Savannah College of Art and Design.
Once I switched my concentration to sequential arts, a form of art where the content is presented in a specific order to tell a story, I felt like I truly found my place in the art world.
I took some elective classes in the comic book department and I realized that’s where I was supposed to be mentally, physically and spiritually, After I graduated, I returned to Baton Rouge, where I taught art classes for middle school students and at Southern University.
I have shown my work at various pop-ups and art exhibitions at galleries such as Elizabethan Gallery, Healthcare Gallery and Wellness Spa, and LSMSA Gallery in Natchitoches.
Currently, I am working with Keidrick Alford of Ellemnop Art, one of the premiere art curators in Baton Rouge creating products with my art,, art events, special projects, interiors, and prints.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
Seeing yourself evolve while creating freely and passionately is one of the most rewarding aspects of being an artist. My mentor and College drawing Professor Robert Cox told me that every ten years you should see a evolution in your personal work. My creative interest started to change over the years and new artistic and life experiences started to slowly change my work. Working around other talented artists is very exciting and has contributed to my personal growth and evolution as well.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
My father’s work ethic and creativity inspired me. Even in his latter days, his work continued to amaze me, He created so freely and made it seem so effortless like his pen is one with Heaven and Earth. I aspire to reach that type of peace and creativity within my own art and to pass on my techniques and knowledge to others that are willing to take the journey to become “true” artist.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ellemnop.art/about-nathaniel-landry2023/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alphonse_jozeff/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nathaniel.a.landry
- Other: https://slimdaddyfleetwood.blogspot.com/