Vesselina Nikolaeva (1976, Sofia) majors in Photography at the Art Academy of Utrecht (the Netherlands) in 2001.

In 2005 she receives The Award for Young Photographer (in the framework of ‘De Zilveren Camera 2004 the Netherlands) followed by the Grand Prix of the 4th International Festival of Photography 2005 in Poland and the ‘Descubrimientos’ at Photoespana 2005 in Spain. Her work has been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums in Bulgaria and The Netherlands and has been a part of festivals in Germany, Spain, France, Poland, Slovakia, Portugal, Greece, Belgium, Finland, Australia and the USA.

Vesselina Nikolaeva has three individual book publications: Baba (2004), School nr.7 (2006) and Simply a Line (2009)

Since 2008 to 2013 she was lecturer at Utrecht School of the Arts www.hku.nl.

Vesselina Nikolaeva

Photo: Alex

Stigma is what we rather not name and I try to document in the project named I’m Good I’m Great I’m Wonderful. As the visible signs of cultural and material deterioration began to occur in my living district and the news began alarming about unemployment, violence, crime, addiction, obesity, higher death rates, infant mortality and other maladies, outsiders started looking at Utrecht North with fear or they simply looked away. The negative concentration needed to be diluted, but nobody moved to these areas unless they had nowhere else to go. The houses here are occupied by people with low income or groups with other socially undesirable qualities such as different religion, culture and race.

I’m Good I’m Great I’m Wonderful is a documentary project about the 'big' contemporary themes that make us all confused and devour communities into nation states: aging population, durability, illegal immigration, education, workforce, self actualization or the lack of some human freedoms. It is about saving grace. Mostly it is about dignity and wisdom in a small ghetto neighbourhood in its last days before being demolished.