Witnessing Our History: Nell Campbell

Sep 23

Sep 23 Witnessing Our History: Nell Campbell

Artist Profile, Print Issue, Santa Barbara

By Grace Miles

Born in Mississippi and raised in southern Louisiana, Nell Campbell has since established herself as one of Santa Barbara’s most socially conscious, civic-minded documentary photographers.

Campbell’s initial interest in photography was sparked by the Museum of Modern Art’s 1955 exhibition catalogue for The Family of Man, a touring exhibition curated by Edward Steichen. The exhibition brought together the work of photographers from around the world to propose the existence of a common human identity amidst post-war instability.

Looking at the body of work Campbell has gone on to produce in the decades since, it is clear that The Family of Man, with its optimistic focus on the simple significance of human life, had a profound influence on what subjects she felt compelled to photograph.

A bulky Instamatic was Campbell’s first camera, and it was with this that she began to capture scenes around her hometown of Lake Charles, Louisiana. While on a trip to Europe in 1967, Campbell’s interest in photography was further stimulated when she met a couple of American G.I.s, who showed her how to use their 35-millimeter camera.

*Nell Campbell, UFW Rally, Hwy 99, 1977, archival pigment print*

Upon her return to the States, she soon left Lake Charles for the city of New Orleans. There, in between shifts at a convenience store, Campbell pored over the local papers,

looking for obituaries of jazz musicians. Their funerals would often entail lively processions and celebrations, which made for brilliant spectacles that Campbell delighted in photographing.

In 1969, Campbell moved to Santa Barbara and enrolled at the Brooks Institute of Photography. However, she soon found herself more interested in the political and social demonstrations that were taking place outside the classroom. With her camera in hand, Campbell attended various local demonstrations against the Vietnam War, and photographed the protestors as they gathered with signs and flags to demand peace.

Later, in the ‘70s, she accepted a job with the United Farm Workers as a staff photographer. Alongside the famous civil and labor rights activist Cesar Chavez, Campbell photographed the strikes, elections and organizational efforts of agricultural labor unions throughout California.

With social issues consistently at the forefront of her work, Campbell has spent decades photographing the determined individuals who come together in crowds to protest wars and oppression and march in favor of gay rights, labor rights, and civil rights.

*Nell Campbell, Vietnam War Protest, San Francisco, 1969, archival pigment print*

Recently, in the aftermath of the 2016 presidential election, she attended over two dozen political demonstrations in Santa Barbara as well as the 2017 Women’s March in Los Angeles. Then, last summer, as the devastating effects of systematic racism roused thousands across the country to march for justice, Campbell was present at Santa Barbara’s own Black Lives Matter demonstrations.

Yet in addition to her protest photography, Campbell has also often returned to the Louisiana of her childhood. There, she has done extensive work photographing duck blinds camouflaged deep within twisting bayous only accessible by boat. These still, rather lonely images present a thoughtful contrast to the crowded, high-energy scenes she regularly captures at demonstrations.

In addition to a six-year study on the unique culture and vibrant revelries of Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Campbell has also photographed the harrowing devastation wrought by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina. Outside of the United States, she has done further photography in Cuba, giving particular attention to the island’s tobacco and sugar cane fields, and the people who tend them.

*Nell Campbell, Exotic World, 2003, archival pigment print*

Throughout her career, Campbell has most often exhibited her work in shows independently organized by either herself or other photographers. These exhibitions are typically held in California, though she has also participated in several shows in her home state of Louisiana. Most recently, her photography has been the subject of exhibitions at Santa Barbara’s Community Arts Workshop, the County Office of Arts and Culture’s Channing Peake Gallery, and the University of California, Santa Barbara’s Art, Design & Architecture Museum.

A self-defined documentary photographer, Campbell is above all committed to documenting life. Her work is about capturing “emotion and feeling,” whether that’s to be found amidst an impassioned crowd of demonstrators, or the peaceful stillness of an isolated bayou. Altogether, the photography of Nell Campbell archives over four decades of social history, and the forces that continue to inspire people to come together and make their voices heard.

Fifty-three years of documenting political demonstrations has been at once an inspiring yet challenging experience. While Campbell is encouraged by the growing number of young people getting involved in activism, and is proud that her own generation continues to fight for social justice, she believes that today, “our democracy is in more danger than at any time during my lifetime.” Marches, demonstrations and demands for justice need to continue because complacency will only quicken the severity of our situation – “and we cannot relax from the struggle to save our democracy.”