Dan Nelken is a New York City-based photographer, visual artist, educator, and documentary storyteller whose portrait-based photographic projects provide a window into the world of communities outside the cultural mainstream. 

His portraits aspire to accentuate each person’s individuality while providing contextual references to communities, cultures, and rituals. His ongoing, award-winning project, HeadStrong: The Women of Rural Uganda, exemplifies his commitment to this theme, as does his prior major work, Till the Cows, Come Home: County Fair Portraits, which Kehrer Verlag published in 2008. 

Nelken has received numerous domestic and international awards as a veteran studio-based advertising and editorial photographer.  His work has been exhibited and published internationally and is included in the following collections, among others:  International Center of Photography, New York City; MAST Foundation, Bologna IT; The Center for Photography at Woodstock, Woodstock NY; The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston TX; The Portland Art Museum, Portland OR; Vontobel Art Collection, Zurich CH; Beth Hatefutsoth Museum, Jerusalem IL; Haverford College Fine Art Photography Collection, Haverford, PA; W. M. Hunt Collection Dancing Bear, New York City.