My name is Celina Nazario. (they/he) I am a photographer currently based in my hometown of Lancaster, PA. Growing up here, I developed a love for all things art; painting, drawing, jewelry making, sculpting, collaging, creative writing, you name it. In adolescence, I had always been labeled the quiet kid but through the arts I was able to find my voice. When I first picked up the camera at age 16, this voice only grew louder. I had always enjoyed imagery, especially growing up in a digital age but clicking that shutter brought me a sense of ease and excitement no other medium had before. I began to take my camera with me everywhere capturing the beauty of the world around me and soon became interested in portraits, stepping out of my shell for the first time to photograph new people.
By the time I was a senior in high school the camera had led me to a life I never imagined possible. Yet that quiet kid still laid deep inside of me. “What if I wasn’t good enough?” Hesitant to stray far from home I applied to a local community college where I joined their photography program. In a completely new school surrounded by all new faces, I finally found myself able to leave that quiet kid behind. For the first time I began to love learning. Teachers no longer shamed me for my struggle to communicate but rewarded me for my passion. I began to speak up for myself and share my ideas through my work in photography.
After two wonderful years, I felt ready to take on the world and continue this education even further. I applied to Rochester Institute of Technology, a school I had visited before but could never picture myself attending until then. Here I spent the last two years of my education perfecting my technical skills and developing a personal style which reflects my unique interests and artistic vision, graduating with a BFA in their Photographic and Imaging Arts program in May 2023.
My recent work primarily displays a sense of duality similar to the contradictions of my own personally, focusing on two separate areas. I love to create conceptual pieces based on emotion as well garden and environmental lifestyle images which convey my deep connection to nature. I have always been a deeply emotional person experiencing the world through the way each thing makes me feel. It is important to me not only to capture the beauty of the world I see but to capture the strong emotions this world brings me. Although my work may often appear to be on opposite ends of a spectrum it all portrays the way I see the world as an artist, illustrating both the joy and pain of existence.