MARIO NEVADO: ART THAT STARES BACK

My work explores the emotional chaos beneath the surface of everyday life. These surreal digital pieces are visual metaphors—emotional portraits of the human psyche in all its haunted beauty. I aim to reveal what’s hidden: vulnerability, conflict, transformation. Each image is a mirror, asking you to recognize yourself within.

Because life is. I use emotional portraiture and symbolic storytelling to create thought-provoking art that doesn’t just sit quietly on a wall—it stares back. If it feels like it’s peeling something open inside you, it’s working. It is also my way of venting to the world, to use my personal issues to create something beautiful and powerful for other to find themselves in. It is my way to offer something back to the world.

Always. Whether it’s a response to personal experiences or a way to arrange my views about societal norms and canons, I always strive to create something that is epic and emotional. Take my artistic journey as a logbook of sorts. Sometimes I start my artworks without knowing where I am going, and eventually, I find myself in them and take control over their final form. It’s a hall of mirrors.

I work in a hybrid visual language between surreal digital art, photoillustration, and dark art. Think dark surrealism meets emotional portraiture. It’s a fusion of realism and fantasy, where symbolic imagery collides with cinematic storytelling to create thought-provoking portraits and scenery that show internal landscapes. My use of saturated color palettes sets my darker artworks apart, because emotions scream in color.

I don’t chase trends—I chase truths. My work is visceral, narrative-driven, and emotionally loaded. I blend photoreal textures with painterly matte painting techniques, 3D and Illustration to create surreal and emotional portraits that feel like they remember you. I think my main signature trait is my use of color: wide, saturated and contrasting color palettes that cover dark themes about inner turmoil or societal downfall sets my body of work apart from the usual monochrome and muted color combos present in dark art.

Mostly, yes. I use a mix of tools including Photoshop, Daz Studio, and sometimes 3D elements to craft each piece from scratch. As a surreal artist, I try to create most of the assets I use, and I still use good old acrylics, watercolors and brushes to create my textures and brushstrokes present in my digital artwork. Every composition is hand-built, layered, and painted to convey texture, emotion, and atmosphere.

Most of my ideas come from what I feel at the moment or from things that are bothering me. I work intuitively, like writing visual poetry. Often, a piece starts with a word, a color, or a visceral emotion—and grows into a full narrative. I see myself as a storyteller using symbols instead of sentences. Most of my surreal digital art starts like a piece of automatic writing (much like the surrealists of the 1920’s) and eventually, amidst the chaos, I find what I am trying to portray, and then I take from there. It’s a symbiotic, organic process.

I work with curated stock photography and custom-built 3D models. I have my own gigantic photo library built from my travels and photo sessions in my studio from the last two decades, but sometimes I also use photos from royalty-free stock photo sites. Every element is purposefully selected and manually blended. I do not use AI in my creative process—every frame is crafted by hand. I admit I experimented with AI when it first launched, as a way to feed my curiosity, but after discovering the implications I stopped.

Depending on complexity, anywhere from 20 to 80+ hours. Many are built over weeks, sometimes months (or even years – I’m not joking!), to reach the emotional clarity and technical detail I strive for.

Yes! Many of my colorful dark art pieces are available as fine art prints, canvas, wood panels metal wall art. All editions are museum-quality, some in exclusive numbered runs with certificates of authenticity. Visit my shop to discover my collection of open edition fine art prints or make your custom wall art order – I offer exclusive signed prints with certificate of authenticity, too.

Yes. My open edition prints are manufactured by Fine Art America to ensure international shipping and high-fidelity reproduction, with 30-day money-back guarantee. My exclusive signed and numbered prints are shipped by me worldwide from Spain, too.

Absolutely. My art is perfect for those who want a space that feels alive with emotion—ideal for creative studios, music rooms, reading nooks, or simply as colorful dark art that speaks louder than words. Get in touch with me to plan a killer collection for your hospitality and retail business and offer your customers an experience with unexpected visuals.

Absolutely. If you’re a manufacturer or distributor producing physical wall art prints in bulk (e.g., for galleries, retailers, or trade shows), I offer scalable licensing rates based on volume and distribution scope. Contact me with your projected quantities and markets and let’s talk.

Yes. My surreal digital art is widely used for book covers, music album artworks, poster design, and more. Each licensing deal is tailored depending on the usage, reach, and media. Visit my art licensing page to learn more.

Both. You can license existing artwork or commission an exclusive piece. I’ve worked with musicians, publishers, filmmakers, and brands looking for inspiring surreal art that hits deep. Creating custom commissions has been my bread and butter for the last 20 years, so drop me a line and let’s work together!

Unless otherwise agreed upon, I retain the copyright to all images. You’re granted rights specific to your license (commercial, editorial, promotional, etc.). Let’s talk—I’ll walk you through the options.

Yes! If you want to get my art tattooed, the only thing I request is that you look for a skilled tattoo artist – my surreal illustrations are very detailed and hard to tattoo. And send me some pics!