Essence Richardson

A R T I S T | E D U C A T O R  | P H O T O G R A P H E R

Essence Richardson is a Chicago-based multidisciplinary artist, educator, and documentary photographer. Her work centers on cultural preservation, creating a living archive of the Black experience. She uses analog and digital photography as a tool to remember her community, documenting intimate and emotive portraits of everyday people.  

Essence photographs, develops, and prints her own work by hand, and brings others into that same process through community darkrooms and youth arts programs. As an educator with The Darkroom Chicago, Essence creates fun, accessible art spaces across Chicago that gives community members a voice and the freedom to explore their creativity.