The Center For Emerging Visual Artists

New artwork just added! Shop CFEVA’s Art Party online art sale + silent auction NOW live through May 28th at 10 PM.

Buy original artwork, bid on one-of-a-kind experiences, and more: tinyurl.com/cfevaartparty2026

Limited tickets and sponsorships for Art Party are still available at cfeva.org/art-party-2026

Unable to attend Art Party? You can still participate online from anywhere. Bidding + buying closes Thursday at 10 PM.

Pictured:
Mary Henderson, Heart
Corinna Cowles, Collage Plate 08
Phillip Adams, Whale of a Time
Diaja, Adam X Eve Series: Orchids
Julia Clift, Hybrid No. 1
Darla Jackson, never ending sky

What a night. Last night’s free Artist Meetup brought together artists, organizers, and community members from across Philadelphia at for an evening of connection, conversation, and creative exchange.

Thank you to everyone who joined us, and special thanks to Pedro, the Open Kitchen Sculpture Garden community, The , , and all who helped make this gathering possible. Spaces like these are essential for building meaningful relationships and strengthening Philadelphia’s arts community.

CFEVA is excited to continue Building Sustainable Futures, a three-year initiative funded by the William Penn Foundation focused on documenting the labor and economic realities of Philadelphia visual artists, particularly artists from underrepresented communities who have historically faced systemic barriers to arts institutions and opportunities.

Through research, artist-led pilots, community events, policy advocacy, and the development of a digital toolkit, this initiative aims to better understand and support sustainable creative careers in Philadelphia.

Artists, we would love to hear from you. Submit the interest form to participate in upcoming surveys, paid focus groups, one-on-one interviews, workshops, and community events — https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2T97X7R?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAdGRleAR6gAVleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAaf2m7q2Nnx7sEcZDf_-pc_fLEVQgumfp8DBTnZSUoxWWpl9AQpQESikbsBfqA_aem_oP7Cg9yhEf7CSZBHC_WZwQ

Your experiences, work, and communities are at the center of this project, and any level of participation matters. We look forward to hearing from you!

Join us for a reception next week at the Science Center!

Sum of its Parts
Works by Lauren Sandler and Alana Walters

On View April 18-June 21
Reception Thursday, April 30, 5-7 PM.
Artist talks at 6 PM.
3600 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104
Please contact [email protected] for more information.

The exhibition features current CFEVA Fellows Lauren Sandler and Alana Walters. Linked by their attention to tactility, sense of place, and research-driven methods, this exhibition showcases two artists who investigate material, environment, and time across distinct media. Together, they construct tangible concepts and embody their exploration in their work. For more information about the exhibition, artists, and works for sale, please visit cfeva.org/exhibitions.

Lauren Sandler is a ceramic artist and educator based in Philadelphia. Her work examines the myriad chronicles told by objects as a means to explore stories that have been erased, distorted, and rewritten. Her recent work utilizes the vessel as an assemblage of parts, an accumulation of material culture to offer multiple perspectives. The work becomes a site to examine economies of power, migration and occupation, labor and commodification. Through this process disparate systems, forces, and ideologies converge as layered narratives combine in one form.

Alana Walters grew up in Lindenwold, New Jersey. During the beginning of fifth grade her family relocated to Philadelphia, PA where she currently lives and works. She struggled with her mental health in middle school which caused her to turn to her love of art making to escape. Bold bright colors and strong bold lines that overlapped each other consumed most of her early work. Alana has had work shown in Delaware, Pennsylvania and Washington State thus far. She has received awards from the National Coalition of 100 Black Women and has been nominated for the Yale Norfolk Program. Currently she continues to work on defining her artistic practice and plans to go back to school to get a degree in art therapy.

Please visit cfeva.org/exhibitions for more details on both artists.

Congratulations CFEVA Fellow Santiago Galeas on your upcoming solo exhibion at the Magic Gardens! We can’t wait to see the show opening this Friday. Check out the article below highlighting the exhibition, curated by CFEVA Alum Chelsey Luster!

https://epgn.com/2026/04/14/philadelphia-magic-gardens-santiago-galeas-entre-raices-y-alas/ itng

Philadelphia Magic Gardens exhibition examines q***rness, migration and belonging - Philadelphia Gay News “Entre Raíces y Alas” (“Between Roots and Wings”), a new exhibition at Philadelphia Magic Gardens, centers q***r ideology and nature.