Featured on Lenscratch
About: Photography has been my life-long practice. My photographic education includes photography in teaching (graduate school), workshops and classes. Currently, I participate in critique groups led by Jane Fulton Alt and Sarah Krepp (Dialogue Chicago). I have pursued my craft with courses at the Chicago Photography Classes and international workshops (Mike Langford, New Zealand). My work has been shown nationally and internationally.
My passion for photography continued through my career as an educator. Holding a doctorate in educational psychology (Loyola University of Chicago), a masters in teaching (Harvard Graduate School of Education), and a bachelors in history (University of Wisconsin), I was a principal and a school superintendent. I taught middle school and, later, as an adjunct professor, taught graduate students at Loyola University of Chicago, Roosevelt and DePaul Universities.
As a teacher, my photography was integral to my classroom. On family camping and backpacking trips out west (U.S. and Canada), my tripod and equipment accompanied me on long mountain hikes. On a yearlong trip around the world, I photographed relentlessly.
My work spans various genre. Landscapes, both real and altered, have captivated me. Environmental portraiture includes Latino landscape workers and Afghan and Thai truckers. Current projects include series on memory (the Holocaust) and abstractions of viewer’s interactions with art.
Solo Shows
28 Days, Perspective Gallery, Evanston, IL 2022
The Art of Viewing… Art, Perspective Gallery, Evanston, IL, August 2020
The Identity Project, Firecat Projects, Chicago, IL, August 2019
Beyond, ARC Gallery, Chicago, IL, June 2019
Peering into the Rainforest, Cultivate, Evanston, IL, November 2019 – January 2020
Four by One, Works by Nelson W Armour, One Grove Gallery, Buffalo Grove High School, March – April 2018
At Work/At Home, En el Trabajo/En Casa, Art on Armitage, Chicago, IL, January 2015
Filter Photo 2012: Eight Photographers, Eight Solo Shows, in Eight Chicago Neighborhoods, October - November 2012, Dollop Coffee and Tea, Chicago, IL
Art Residencies
Brush Creek Foundation for the Arts, Saratoga, WY, October 2019
Chicago – Lucerne Art Residency, Lucerne, Switzerland, June 2022
Two-person shows
The Art of Viewing Art (Nelson Armour) and Highway Hypnosis (Jessica Prugh), Perspective Gallery, Evanston, IL August 2020
Streets of Chicago, Nelson W Armour and Jordan Scott, 1100 Florence, Evanston, IL, August 2019
Pre-Existing – Portraits by Nelson W Armour and Michael Kreuser and their stories of Pre-Existing Health Conditions, Uri Eichen Gallery, Chicago, IL, December 2018 – January 2019
Surface Tension (with Ted Glasoe), Saugatuck Center for the Arts, Saugatuck, MI, January – February 2018
Surface Tension (with Ted Glasoe), Evanston Art Center, Evanston, IL, July 2017
Surface Tension (with Ted Glasoe), Art NXT Level/33 Contemporary, Chicago, IL, May – June 2017
Surface Tension (with Ted Glasoe), The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, Chicago, IL, January – April 2017
Surface Tension (with Ted Glasoe), Patagonia Chicago Lincoln Park, Chicago, IL, August 2017 – March 2019
Group Shows
PhotoMidwest 12th Biennial Exhibition 2022, Aline Smithson Juror, Promega Gallery, Fitchburg, WI, September – December 2022
Art from the Heartland, Indianapolis Art Center, Indianapolis, IN, June – August 2022
Where Art Works: Artist Communities and Creative Placemaking, Eat Paint Studio, Chicago, IL, December 2021 – January 2022
Body Politics, ARC Gallery, Chicago, IL, January 2022
Where Art Works: Artist Communities and Creative Placemaking, Eat Paint Studio, Chicago, IL, December 2021 – January 2022
Rockford Midwestern Biennial 2020, Rockford Art Museum, Rockford, IL, October – January 2021
11th Biennial Juried Exhibition (online), Photo Midwest Festival 2020, Madison, WI, October – December 2020
The Greater Good, Insite Gallery, Chicago Photography Classes, Chicago, IL, September – November 2020
"Staying Home Together," F-Stop Magazine - issue #103 August 2020
We’re All in the Same Boat…Are We? Stola Contemporary, Chicago, IL, July 16 – August 16, 2020
Portraits of Self-Isolation(Juried by Aline Smithson), PhotoPlace Gallery, Online Gallery Annex, Vermont Photography Workspace, Middlebury, VT, August 2020
Platforms Project, Independent Art Fair, Athens, Greece. Due to Covid the exhibit was held as a virtual event, May 2020
7th annual international 2019 FL3TCH3R Exhibit: Social and Politically
Engaged Art, Reece Museum, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN, September – December 2019
2019 DUMA Biennial, Dubuque Museum of Art, Dubuque, IA, June – September 2019
31st Annual Member Show, Chicago Alliance of Visual Artists, Bridgeport Arts Center, Chicago, IL, April 2019
Later Impressions 2018, Exhibit Award of Excellence, Chicago Alliance of Visual Artists, Old Town Art Center – Leslie Wolfe Gallery, Chicago, IL, September 2018
Vicinity Show 2018, Perspective Gallery, Evanston, IL, July 2018
Impermanent Lands & eco-ART - The Art of Human Interaction with the Environment, The Art Center, Highland Park, IL, May – June 2018
Walkout! 1968 and 2018 School Walkouts (October 2018) and April 1968 and Today: Police and Military Occupation of Chicago (May 2018), Uri Eichen Gallery, Chicago, IL
Capturing the Light (Juried by Laura Moya), PhotoPlace Gallery, Online Gallery Annex, Vermont Photography Workspace, Middlebury, VT, April 4 - 28, 2018
The State of America (Juried by Jim Richardson), PhotoPlace Gallery, Online Gallery Annex, Vermont Photography Workspace, Middlebury, VT, January 3 – 27, 2018
The Access Room, A small works exhibition, Art NXT Level/33 Contemporary, Chicago, IL, November – December 2017
Portraits (Juried by Elizabeth Avedon), South x Southeast Photo Gallery, South x Southeast PhotoMagazine, November 2017
Portals (Juried by Aline Smithson), PhotoPlace Gallery, Online Gallery Annex, Vermont Photography Workspace, Middlebury, VT, August 16 - September 9, 2017
Art Encounter Gala (invitational), April 2017, Ovation, Chicago, IL
One Inspired Evening (juried benefit), Jurors Prize (3rd Place), Moonlight Studios, Chicago, IL, March 2017
Member's Show, Chicago Alliance of Visual Artists, Old Town Triangle Association
Leslie Wolfe Gallery, Chicago, IL, April – May 2017
Art in City Hall, The Art Center and the City of Highland Park, Highland Park, January – April 2017
Art Encounters, Studio Visit: Kathy Weaver and Nelson Armour, Highland Park, IL, November 2016
Dialogue Chicago: Full Force, Bridgeport Art Center, Chicago, IL, June – August 2016
Shared Creations, Bridgeport Art Center, Chicago, IL, August – October 2015
Later Impressions, Chicago Alliance of Visual Artists, The Evanston Art Center, Evanston, IL, October 2016
Beauty and Fragility in Lake Michigan, Health in the Arts Gallery Clinic, University of Illinois – Chicago, June – August 2015
Field Study, David Weinberg Gallery, and Filter Photo Festival 2015, curated by Katherine Ware and Meg T. Noe, Chicago, IL, August – early October 2015
2nd Annual Photography Show, Zia Gallery, Winnetka, IL, August 2015
Supermarket 2015, Stockholm Independent Art Fair, Stockholm, Sweden, April 2015
The Golden Hours: At Dawn and Dusk, PhotoPlace Gallery, Juror Eddie Solway, Middlebury, VT, June 2015
Supermarket 2015, Stockholm Independent Art Fair, Stockholm, Sweden, April 2015
LENS 2015, juried by Paul Berlanga (Stephen Daiter Gallery), Perspective Gallery, Evanston, IL, March 2015
Park Avenue Beach, Nest Furniture Art Gallery, Chicago, IL, January – May 2015
Photography, Zia Gallery, Winnetka, IL, August 2014
Find the Light (Juried by Don Ross), PhotoPlace Gallery, Online Gallery Annex, Vermont Photography Workspace, Middlebury, VT, July 2014
Stormy Weather (juried exhibition) 1650Gallery, Los Angeles, California, April 2014
Mountains and Sea (Juried by Alan Nyiri), PhotoPlace Gallery, Vermont Photography Workspace, Middlebury, VT, September 2013
750 Show, Zia Gallery, Winnetka, IL, July 27 - August 31, 2013
Mountains and Sea (Juried by Alan Nyiri), PhotoPlace Gallery, Vermont Photography Workspace, Middlebury, VT, September 2013
Multiple Exposures: The Jane Fulton Alt Photography Group, Bridgeport Art Center, Chicago, IL, May – June 2013
The Magic of Light (Juried by Aline Smithson), PhotoPlace Gallery, Vermont Photography Workspace, Middlebury, VT, March 2013
Within Sight Gallery, Fall 2011 Group Show, October 2011 - May 2012, Chicago Photography Classes, Chicago, IL
Publications/Press:
28 Days, Exhibition Catalogue, Perspective Gallery, Evanston, IL 2022
Staying Home Together, published book, F-Stop Magazine and dotART Cultural Association, Trieste, Italy, 2020
"Staying Home Together," F-Stop Magazine - issue #103 August 2020
Portraits of Self-Isolation(Juried by Aline Smithson), PhotoPlace Gallery, Online Gallery Annex, Vermont Photography Workspace, Middlebury, VT, August 2020
https://photoplacegallery.com/online-juried-shows/photograph-those-you-love-portraits-of-self-isolation/
Platforms Project, Independent Art Fair, Athens, Greece, https://platformsproject.com/platforms?fbclid=IwAR3yOEz5EYxkJbsuU3tPur1HCi-vFQkszA8V3P8K-qON1R1PUTCOwggaTD8
Capturing the Light (Juried by Laura Moya), PhotoPlace Gallery, Online Gallery Annex, Vermont Photography Workspace, Middlebury, VT, April 4 - 28, 2018 (show catalogue at http://www.blurb.com/b/8598264-capturing-the-light-softcover)
Surface Tension, Artists' Talk on YouTube (https://youtu.be/9L43xVwNinM)at Art NXT Level/33 Contemporary, Zhou B Art Center, June 16, 2017, Chicago, IL
Surface Tension, Exhibition Catalogue (Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, artNXTlevel, Evanston Art Center), Chicago, IL, January 2017
Nature in Chicago land, "Photo Exhibition Tells the Tale of Two Lake Michigans—and Reinforces the Need for Good Environmental Stewardship," April 11, 2017
https://natureinchicago.wordpress.com/2017/04/11/photo-exhibition-tells-the-tale-of-two-lake-michigans-and-reinforces-the-need-for-good-environmental-stewardship/
Chicago Sun-Times, February 26, 2017
http://chicago.suntimes.com/sports/art-and-the-environment-photography-for-lake-michigan-health/
East on Central, Volume 15, 2017 – 2018, Fall 2017, Highland Park, IL
East on Central, Volume 14, 2016 – 2017, Fall 2016, Highland Park, IL
East on Central, Volume 14, 2015 – 2016, Fall 2015, Highland Park, IL
Lenscratch, Fine Art Photography Daily, June 20, 2015, http://lenscratch.com/2015/06/surface-tension/
The Golden Hours: At Dawn and Dusk, PhotoPlace Gallery, Juror Eddie Solway, Vermont Photography Workshop, 2015. Middlebury, VT, (show catalog at http://www.blurb.com/b/6233387-the-golden-hours-dawn-and-dusk)
Chicago Reader, March 12, 2015, Visual Arts, print edition, p. 33
LENS2015, Perspective Gallery's 5th Annual International Juried Photo Exhibition, Evanston, IL
http://chirpradio.org/blog/art-on-armitage, Chirp Radio Blog, Shawna Kaiser, January 14, 2015
http://highlandpark.chicagotribune.com/2015/01/09/highland-park-photographer-turns-lens-landscape-workers/, Highland Park photographer turns the lens on landscape workers, Highland Park News (Chicago Tribune), January 9, 2015
http://artonarmitage.com, Art on Armitage, Mary Ellen Croteau, January 5, 2015
http://artistsofchicago.com/post/95459991531/nelson-armour, Artists of Chicago, Nancy Strahinic, August 22, 2014
http://filterphoto.tumblr.com/post/90511821891/all-images-from-the-series-park-avenue-beach, Image 37, W. Tanner Young, July 1, 2014
Finding the Light, PhotoPlace Gallery, Vermont Photography Workspace, 2014, Middlebury, VT
Water: A Universal Human Right, Chicago Women’s Caucus for Art Exhibition Catalogue, Chicago, IL 2014
Stormy Weather, 1650Gallery, 2014, Los Angeles, CA
Mountains and Sea, PhotoPlace Gallery, Vermont Photography Workspace, 2013, Middlebury, VT
The Magic of Light, PhotoPlace Gallery, Vermont Photography Workspace, 2013, Middlebury, VT
Member
Perspective Gallery, Evanston, IL
A not-for-profit, community-oriented cooperative whose purpose is to promote fine art photography
Education
Chicago Photography Classes
Seven courses (2010 – 2018)
Loyola University of Chicago
Ed. D. in Educational Psychology (January 1983)
Photographic Workshops (Chicago, Peter Gold, 1970)
Harvard Graduate School of Education
M.A.T. in the Teaching of Social Studies (1968)
Harvard Principal Center (summer 1995)
University of Wisconsin-Madison
B.A. with Honors in Major Field (1967) -
Major: American Intellectual History | Minor: English