New York-based renowned photographer and community leader, Eva Woolridge, speaks on self-acceptance as a queer biracial Black and Chinese American woman, and leads an interactive workshop on learning to "color outside of the lines" to find your true path.

This keynote artist talk and workshop is presented by the UMD Office of Multicultural Involvement and Community Advocacy as part of Multiracial Heritage Month 2021.

About Eva Woolridge

Eva Woolridge (she/her) is a biracial Black and Chinese-American photographer residing in Brooklyn, New York. Her photo series explore the sexual, spiritual and emotional nature of femininity. In her work she transcends surface-level labels of people of color by conveying strength, perseverance, vulnerability and vitality using strong lighting and composition.

Upon graduating from the University of Maryland, Eva completed her second social-consciousness photo narrative called Embrace Your Essence. Produced in 2015, the series focused on young women’ journeys toward self-love–defining what they find beautiful about themselves. Many of the narratives included illnesses, challenges to meet Western standards of beauty and quirks that once negatively affected their self-esteem. This received international recognition and featured in Business Insider, Cosmopolitan Magazine, Huffington Post and more.

Woolridge continues to use visual narratives to convey a tone of a new, inclusive wave of feminine energy through her gaze as a queer, woman of color, while commenting on the social & cultural conditions of her communities.

About Multiracial Heritage Month 2021

The theme for the month is “Coloring Outside the Lines” which challenges the notion that people of certain races need to look a certain way for their identity to be validated. Instead of cursing the features we have or lack, we encourage folks to embrace and love their appearance as a reflection of their identity–without the need for outsiders’ acceptance. “Coloring Outside the Lines” dispels the idea that race exists as a monolith and Multiracial folks should not be expected to conform to stereotypes in order to satisfy others’ curiosity. As the proportion of the population that identifies as mixed continues to increase exponentially, racial expectations and stereotypes are obsolete. Instead, others should recognize Multiraciality exists on a spectrum and people should not pass judgement without knowing the whole story.