“Profile Noire,” a poignant passion project featuring 100 women of color photographed over the course of a year, includes a solo museum exhibit (the opening night in October 2019 drew 300 attendees), online gallery and coffee table book, by photographer Rhonisha Franklin (@rdione) of R. Dione Foto.

“Profile Noire is what happens when you offer Black women a time and space to be vulnerable and transparent,” Franklin explains. “It is what happens when Black women hold space for themselves. When they allow their fears, insecurities, issues and problems to lead them not to a place of despair but to a place of power.”

The full project consists of 300 images—three for each participant. Franklin photographed each woman in three poses: side/profile view, straight on, and a pose she calls the “seat of power.” The participants were each asked to answer three questions, using one word each, to accompany each pose:

1. What is one word that describes how you see yourself?
2. What is one word that describes how others see you?
3. What is your power word?

Those words were then used to title each of the images.

The image below was the spark and inspiration for the entire project. Titled “Cameo,” of subject Lena Little, it is the cover of the coffee table book, Franklin explains: “This is my way of giving back to Black women their energy, power and identity. This book changes the visual representation of Black women and how Black women and girls see themselves. It is my hope that it spark conversation and dialogue and prompt inner reflection. But in the end, what the reader gets out of this experience is their own—and that, too, is part of the story.”

“When I created this image,” says Franklin, “I placed Lena on a black background because I love how black skin looks on a black background draped in black clothing. I’ve also always loved the cameo necklaces and the luxury and grace they symbolize, but it’s very difficult to find them with African features. Lena’s hair was initially down, but as soon as I turned her to her profile, I knew it all had to be swept up into a bun. I keep hairpins close by and grabbed three and pinned it up within seconds. I just wanted her to be in that moment, no smile, no specific expression, just existing in that moment in time.”

Franklin adds that while she loves these behind-the-scenes components, as a finished image, “the darkness and the glow of her skin, the softness and femininity—while at the same time being very strong and powerful—creates a reflection for me and for every Black woman whether they realize this exists in them or not. It was this that I needed to share with more women of color and the world.”

View more of the striking Profile Noire images here.

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