Chicago-based Ghanaian photographer Lawrence Agyei celebrates the South Shore Drill Team in his latest body of work, “DRILL.” A non-profit organization based on the south side of Chicago, the group uses performance art to empower youth. In 2020, the pandemic halted SSDT’s performance, disrupting the close-knit community, and, for the first time in 35 years, canceling their performance at the Bud Billiken Parade—the largest African American parade in the country. As restrictions eased in 2021, Agyei was introduced to the team and spent the year documenting their preparation for a much-anticipated return to the parade.

“DRILL” is the culmination of this time spent working together and we selected it as one of the winners of our 2022 Art & Photo Book Awards. With support from Artmobile, we helped Lawrence turn this beautiful series into a book! If you want the opportunity to publish a book of your own work, you can pre-register for our 2023 Art & Photo Book Awards here.

See more from “DRILL” below!