Chromophore Artspace

06/17/2026

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Mars .orbit

Within black q***r culture, trade is a term with layered meanings tied to ideas of masculinity, desirability, visibility, and identity.

In the TRADE series, multidisciplinary artist Mars reclaims the term as an expression distinctly rooted in the black gay community. Drawing from vintage erotic photography, archival imagery, and printmaking traditions, they transform images often filtered through a white gaze into acts of resistance and protection against appropriation.

Using painting, gelli plate printing, graphite, and silver pigments, Mars creates works that resemble photographic negatives, recovering histories that are too often erased while affirming Black q***r agency, and authorship.

On view now in Loving Ourselves Into Existence through July 26.

06/15/2026

Honored to share that Chromophore Artspace has been nominated for the 2026 BLK RVA Rising Community Impact Award.

In just over a year, we’ve exhibited dozens of artists, hosted wellness events, performances, workshops, and made space for creative entrepreneurs to grow.

If you’ve attended an event, exhibited art, shopped the ChromoStore, or simply believe in this work, I’d be grateful for your vote. Voting is unlimited, so feel free to vote every day and help us keep building meaningful creative ecosystems together.

Thank you for believing in the vision.

06/15/2026

Meet the newest member of the Chromophore team!

We’re excited to welcome Anya Joseph as our new Gallery Assistant. Anya is an Antiguan American multidisciplinary artist whose work explores movement, cycles, place, and the Black experience. Originally from Baltimore, they studied Visual Art and Graphic Design in Melbourne, Australia before relocating to Richmond, bringing experience in exhibition design, curation, and fashion modeling to their creative practice.

Working across painting, collage, and beadwork, Anya approaches portraiture as a space for experimentation and exploration. Their work resists a singular style, often drawing from Surrealist influences to examine the ways identity, memory, and human experience shift in and out of the body. Rather than being confined to one form or representation, their work embraces transformation, multiplicity, and possibility.

Anya is also one of the featured artists in our current exhibition, Loving Ourselves Into Existence. We’re thrilled to have their creativity, thoughtfulness, and eye for design supporting the gallery while continuing to grow their own artistic practice.

Stop by, say hello, and give Anya a warm welcome.

Loving Ourselves Into Existence is on view through July 26. Gallery hours are Wednesday–Sunday, 2–6 PM, or by appointment.

06/14/2026

Thank you to everyone who came out for the opening reception of Loving Ourselves Into Existence.

Despite the sweltering heat, we had a wonderful flow of visitors throughout the evening and so many meaningful conversations around the work. We’re grateful to everyone who showed up to celebrate these artists and to witness their stories.

A special congratulations to curators and on a beautifully realized exhibition.

The show remains on view through July 26. Stop by during regular gallery hours, Wednesday–Saturday, 2–6 PM, or DM us to schedule a private walkthrough.

06/05/2026

COMING SOON: Loving Ourselves Into Existence | June 12 - July 26, 2026

Loving Ourselves Into Existence is a group exhibition featuring Black q***r artists whose work explores identity, intimacy, and self-determination through painting, photography, mixed media, and more.

As we prepare for the opening reception on June 12, we’re thrilled to introduce the curators behind the exhibition.

For Richmond-based visual artist Justice Dwight, this marks their curatorial debut. An Annual Resident Artist at VisArts, Justice creates richly textured portraits celebrating Black and q***r beauty using acrylic, fabric, glitter, rhinestones, and mixed media. Influenced by Barkley Hendricks, Bisa Butler, and Derrick Adams, their work has been exhibited at Southside Contemporary, Capital One, and Iridian Gallery, among many others. Justice has collaborated with institutions including the University of Maryland, created work for Issa Rae, Big Freedia, and Azealia Banks, and was commissioned by the U.S. Embassy for a mural project in Cuba celebrating Black and q***r beauty.

Nigel Richardson is a curator, cultural producer, and community builder whose work centers Black cultural expression through art, storytelling, and public programming. Nigel has curated exhibitions and cultural experiences throughout Richmond, including projects presented at Candela Books + Gallery, Main St. Station Gallery, Southside Contemporary Art Gallery, and more. He was a founding force behind The JXN Project, currently serves as Events Coordinator for Main Street Station, and previously served as Program Director for Afrikana Independent Film Festival. His practice explores cultural memory, diasporic connection, placemaking, and communal ritual.

Together, Justice and Nigel offer a vision rooted in visibility, belonging, and love as a radical act of self-actualization.

Join us June 12 from 6-9PM to celebrate the artists, curators and stories that make this exhibition possible.

Flyer art: My Secret

06/05/2026

WORD TO THE MOTHER

Join us for the closing celebration of Umi Says during

Women spoken word artists | 6–7 PM
Soulful grooves with .kirven | 7–9 PM
Board games, cards & conversation
Take in the art before the show closes
Shop local makers in the ChromoStore

Friday, June 5 | 6–10 PM
Chromophore Artspace

No cover. Just good people, good vibes, and a little old-school community gathering energy.

And when you see .davis lock the door and draw the blinds, you ain’t gotta go home, but….

🖼️: Josephine quilt by Lucy Lawrence Kilpatrick

05/28/2026

05/23/2026

Hey y’all — quick update. We’re moving WORD TO THE MOTHER to First Friday.

Between the weather, end of school year busyness, and the holiday weekend, we figured folks are already stretched thin.

The good news? It’ll now serve as a closing event for Umi Says, which honestly feels right. This show, and this gathering both deserve more time to breathe.

So save the date for First Friday. We’ll gather around art, spoken word, music, conversation, and community. Hope to see you there.

05/20/2026

CALL FOR ART: RICH BLUE HUES

Chromophore Artspace is accepting submissions for RICH BLUE HUES, a juried group exhibition exploring the symbolism, emotional resonance, and layered meanings of the color blue within the Black diasporic experience.

This exhibition is part of RICH BLUE HUES Fest—an evolving series of art, music, foodways, wellness, and storytelling experiences exploring blue as a symbol of Black identity across the Americas: longing, healing, water, sky, spirit, survival, melancholy, joy, and ancestry.

We’re seeking work that engages blue as language, memory, metaphor, or lived experience.

Open to artists 18+ in the continental U.S.
Submission Deadline: June 25, 2026
Artwork Due: July 22, 2026
Exhibition: August 5 – September 26, 2026

Artists may submit up to 3 works. Scan the QR code or visit the link in bio to apply.

ArtistOpportunity