Clare Richardson: Harlemville

Harlemville is a small community in North America that adheres to the philosophical writings of the Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner and his Waldorf schooling system. The community encourages freedom of expression, creativity and imagination, which in turn is meant to imbue an uninhibited self-confidence and self-awareness rarely present in mainstream American society. Clare Richardson spent 24 months observing the community firsthand and found their reverence for nature and the "confident quietness" of this small place in the world to be captivating. With their quiet, formal clarity, her images evoke a nostalgic sense of innocence; Harlemville appears idyllic in its radical optimism.