Background
Richardson was born on Long Island, New York, to an Irish Catholic family.
Richardson was born on Long Island, New York, to an Irish Catholic family.
Originally a graphic designer in New York City, Richardson did not pick up a camera until age 35. His rise to fashion fame was swift, although not without some battle on his part:
Richardson developed a reputation for being difficult to work with. He brought his personal life, which was tumultuous, into his art
He battled with bouts of schizophrenia throughout his life.
After making it to the top of the often catty and vicious world of fashion, getting paid up to $15,000 for a single image, he succumbed to his illness and ended up homeless on the streets of San Francisco. Richardson restarted his career in his sixties, once again working for such magazines as Italian Vogue and British Gentlemen’s Quarterly. He was the father of photographer Terry Richardson.