Imagined Futures, Images by Noelle Richard

“Symptoms of short-term exposure include headaches, nausea, a burning sensation in the throat, and nosebleeds.”

“Utilization of natural reserves of oil, gas, and water can lead to subsidence and earthquakes.”

“Natural events, such as heavy rain, earthquakes, hurricanes, and floods, may exacerbate already-perilous circumstances.”

“Tests turned up nothing abnormal. The water was of another concern.”

“Chemical incidents, particularly acts of terrorism, may cause fear and anxiety in populations.”

“Though recorded levels supposedly did not pose a concern, authorities have mandated nearby residents to stay indoors.”

“Public information and advisories intended to prevent mass hysteria may ultimately prove unsuccessful.”

NOELLE RICHARD (they/them) is a trans/non-binary white visual artist from Cleveland, OH, based in New Orleans, LA. Noelle earned a BFA in Drawing, with an emphasis in Photography and Video, from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 2017. They continued their thesis research on queer experimental film in Germany in October 2017. After working as the preparator for a contemporary art collection in Cleveland from 2017-2020, Noelle relocated to New Orleans, LA, in early 2020 for filmmaking and illustration.

Noelle makes experimental comics which imagine near-futures/parallel universes with a focus on human-made environmental change and its psychological effects. Their work suggests varied answers to the question, “what does the future feel like?” Frequently, there is slippage in the drawings between what is an imagined future and what can currently be found in the present. Their illustrations have a cinematic feel, informed by their film and video work. With so many distractions in the contemporary world, they find making things that require time to take in and digest, such as films, artist books, and comics, more important than ever.

Noelle’s art books and zines can be found in bookstores and comic shops nationally, and they table at various indie comic and print conventions. Their films have screened nationally and internationally, and they had their first solo show of original drawings in April 2019. In November 2019, they were commissioned to create an image in collaboration with Amanda D. King for the For Freedoms Billboard campaign. Their work was most recently shown as a part of 912 Julia’s online exhibition, MUTUAL, curated by Keysha Rivera in New Orleans, LA, and will be included in a forthcoming comics anthology published by the Heights Library in Cleveland Heights, OH.