"COMMUNITY IS ESSENTIAL"

Nik Richard is an urban planner and artist from New Orleans and currently teaches advanced illustration at Loyola University. Richard uses his art to narrate his journey and the colorful life and history of the people and environment of Southern Louisiana. In 2021 Richard was asked to paint “Community Is Essential” for the new @YayaArtsCenter in New Orleans’ Central City. This mural sits across the street from the former Flint-Goodridge Hospital, which served primarily Black patients in New Orleans so, using his mother as muse for the composition, Richard’s work reflects on the role of culture, health and healthcare, and social justice in defining “essential community."