Blind photographer Michael Richard dead

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 17 (UPI) -- Los Angeles musician and urban abstract photographer Michael Richard, who continued working after becoming blind, has died of cancer at age 58.

Richard's wife, Patrice Hughes said her husband died Aug. 28 of cancer at a Burbank, Calif., hospital, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.

His black and white abstract urban photographs have been exhibited nationally, including the "Blind at the Museum" exhibit at the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive last summer.

Richard had a congenital eye condition, and then in 2002, had a malignant tumor removed from behind his right eye, which left him with only "gauzy" vision, the Times said.

In a statement before his death, Richard said he felt "driven" to help other disabled people "state their artistic case on their own terms and on a level playing field."

Musically, he played backup guitar for several name acts, including Little Richard and The Coasters.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by a daughter from his first marriage and three grandchildren.