I am Nelson Guda
… and this is my blog.
I am an artist who was also once a scientist. I am a writer and activist. My work has taken me around the world from remote wilderness to international conflict zones.
My core philosophy is that life is a canvas for art. Because of that, in addition to my work I’ll post about anything that peaks my interest or inflames my passion. All from my odd perspective as someone who has lived several very different lives.
Scroll down to see back posts. Go to nelsonguda.com to see my work. ATX UnBound is my podcast and online publication about creators in Austin. Send me a message if you have a question or something interesting to share.
Most Recent Post
A School Called MYTO
On my first trip to Kenya for the Enemies Project, I went to the Mathare slum of Kenya to meet people who had been affected by the tragic post-election riots that swept through Kenya in 2009. One of the people I met in Mathare was Benard Ochieng who had started a...
A School Called MYTO
On my first trip to Kenya for the Enemies Project, I went to the Mathare slum of Kenya to meet people who had been affected by the tragic post-election riots that swept through Kenya in 2009. One of the people I met in Mathare was Benard Ochieng who had started a...
The End of the World
Peace must be worked for. It isn't easy. Nobody ever said it was. I have seen this. The world won't end tomorrow, and many of us in the world have to continue the long and painful process of finding peace and justice. It is work, but it is worthwhile. This evening I...
Background to ENEMIES
While I am putting together new works from my Kashmir trip, I thought you all might like to see the project that was probably the genesis of ENEMIES. The Fallen Leaves Project was inspired by casualties coming out of Iraq. There are two sets of works here....
Floating Among the Clouds and Stars
Ladakh… Wild taxi rides snaking over passes through snow-capped mountains to monasteries perched on the edges of cliffs. Young monks playing with matchbox cars and trading candy during prayers – later one runs up to our table during dinner, grabs the tea bag out of my...
Leaders in a Harsh Paradise
Kashmir rushed upon us like a charging animal. In other conflict zones I have gone in quietly and with subtle diplomacy in order to find people to photograph. In Rwanda, where it is illegal to ask peoples' ethnicity, it took me three months of emails and phone calls...
Fire, Sorrow and Caution
Again I have been holding off on posting about Kashmir, because the situation here has been a bit uncertain. After the burning down of the Dastageer Sahab shrine, tensions went up a bit as all of Kashmir was closed down for nearly five days. Because of the sensitivity...
Kashmir
So, here we are in Kashmir. I needed to wait and feel things out before blogging about this very complicated conflict. The first thing I will say is that the situation here is much more than we hear about in the west. This is not a simple two-sided conflict. There are...
The ENEMIES Project
Right now I am blogging about my work on the ENEMIES Project – an ongoing project in which I am traveling to past and current conflict zones around the world to photograph people from opposite sides of conflicts. Tibetan refugee in Dharamsala, India – from The...
Staying in former and current conflict zones
Rainy morning. No electricity. This is one of the complaints of the Kashmiris I've talked to - their massive water resources are dammed for hydroelectric generation and the majority of power is shipped out of the region. I was trying to post pics of our hotel, but...
McLeod Ganj Walk
I've been in McLeod Ganj longer than I planned - going on two weeks now. A couple weeks ago China closed Tibet to foreigners, so I decided that this is a good place to photograph at least half of the Tibet-China issue. Among Tibetans here there is a huge...
Political Prisoners and the Most Powerful Refugee Community in the World
Arresting, horrifying, sad... what else to describe the photographs and illustrations in the offices and gallery of GuChuSum. GuChuSum is the Tibetan Former Political Prisoners Association. The name means "March, September, October", which are the months...
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