Detroit Highlight: Teilo Wessells

Detroit Highlight: Teilo Wessells by Sierra R. AguilarJune 17, 2025

Detroit is vivacious.

Alive with color, empathy, and tenacious nature. A place of constant evolution and endurance. As the automotive capital of the world, it can be easy to overlook the artistic legacy of Detroit artists and their contributions to contemporary and historical art. However, unique to the Michigan city, are artists of immense photographic caliber. Lens-based artists are exploring materiality, color, and the experimental variables of nature in relation to the city and its status. They are the key documentarians to evolution, growth, and historical changes to the community and the people who shape it. Photographing your way through the city, you are immersed into a multitude of cultures and perspectives, a vast range of landscapes and demographics, and a neighborhood of people who push past the stereotypes, into a new world of possibility.

As a love letter to my city, I’ve connected with three local photographers who are visually imperative to the discussion of materiality, color and experimental approaches in relation to photography.

In discussing a specialized approach to color, we are delving into the work of Teilo Wessells.

Teilo Wessells is a fine art photographer and alumnus of the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, receiving the Imre J. Molnar artistic achievement award. He uses compressed, design focused compositions to explore the fleeting characteristics of organic and inorganic structures. He also does experimental fashion portraiture using his own unique processes and techniques. Teilo has kicked his career off by doing assistant work for John D’angelo and having his pieces shown in Avant Garden Detroit and the Orion Art Center.

Follow Teilo on Instagram!

I started my photography journey in high school. I was very fortunate to have a teacher, Lynn Settles, who cared deeply about her students and what they had to say, which inspired me on numerous levels to become the artist I am today. I attended Washtenaw Community College to learn the technicals of the camera and graduated in 2020. College for Creative Studies was my next step where I learned how to use the technical information I had previously acquired to translate my world view into a visual medium, especially with the use of color.

©Teilo Wessells, Jero

After graduating in 2023 with a BFA, I remained in Detroit and continued to further my work and evolve it with myself. One thing that will always stay the same is my continued focus on color. To me, color is one of the three building blocks of what makes visual art feel any certain way. To me, it is the most powerful. I am constantly thinking about how colors interact with each other and the feeling it gives me, whether it is in a photo or not, and the fact that we have the power to use color how we want is something deeply powerful to me.

I have remained in Detroit because I fell in love with the community and the outlook on art this city has. Detroit has a tight knit group of people with talent that rivals anywhere else, while having a continued focus on empathy and human connection. I cannot see myself thriving anywhere else like I have since being here. I am constantly inspired in ways beyond art by every new person I meet, as well as by people I already know here.

As Wessells approach to color is an indelible contribution to contemporary photographic art, his connection to the community and the vibrant art scene of Detroit has led to authentic imagery of the city and the people who live there. Be sure to keep up with Teilo’s work: www.teilowessells.com.