About

I am originally from Philadelphia, but I now live in Oakland CA with my wife and our two cats. Although I transitioned through several career paths, I finally found a snug fit as an Instructional Designer, in part because it requires a good understanding and application of graphic design. I have always had a creative life that paralleled my professional one. I have used a camera throughout my life, but especially when traveling. Travel sparked my motivation to move deeper into photography. Photography is important to me because it is how I see the world. It’s also a way I document and add meaning to my life experiences. Through photography, I reveal things to myself.

I think of my recent work as creating a narrative about people’s impact on place and place’s impact on its inhabitants. My strong interest in place and people influences happened partly due to losing my father when I was ten. I was an only child and my parents were from Europe. Since I had no extended family in the US, I often sought solace and comfort in special places near where I grew up. I developed deep and powerful connections with certain places as a child and young adult that strongly informed my sense of personal identity as an adult. 

Despite having varied photographic interests, I strive to make images with a social commentary focus. My photographic series hint at a narrative that explores the influence that people and place have on each other.

Thanks for visiting my small space on the internet. I hope you enjoy and connect with what you see here.

-Michael Richardson