Artist Booklet - Family Housing Fund

16Celeste A. Nelms | Untitled #27 | 1996, gelatin silver printCeleste A. Nelms | Untitled #2 | 1997, gelatin silver print17Artist’s Statement | celeste a. nelmsWhen I photograph, I am drawn to people’s discarded possessions andabandoned environments. I am interested in the transformation of regardto disregard, while recognizing that the value we place on objects changesthrough time and with certain events.My work first began with a fascination for buildings and structuresthat had been left behind. In these settings, I thought about the peoplewho once inhabited them and discovered the beauty of nature regeneratingitself. My images now include discarded objects that I find for free or atyard sales and thrift stores. I include my own figure in each photographbecause I want to record both a physical and psychological response..........................................Celeste A. Nelms | Birds (detail) | 2002, gelatin silver printCeleste A. Nelms has been making photographsfor 25 years and has exhibited her work bothnationally and internationally. She has receivedgrants from the McKnight Foundation, theMinnesota State Arts Board, and the JeromeFoundation. She also has been an artist-in-residenceat the New York Mills Regional Cultural Center,the Vermont Studio Center, and the Bemis Centerfor Contemporary Arts in Omaha, Nebraska.