Artist-in-Residence (Fall 2025): Genesis Tramaine - Foundation for Spirituality and the Arts

Artist-in-Residence Genesis Tramaine Charleston, SC | Fall 2025 Genesis Tramaine (b. 1983) is a self-taught artist, and self-described “devotional painter,” known for her striking expressionist portraits, many of which depict subjects inspired by her Christian faith. Tramaine considers her portraits—which depict Black faces in myriad ways—to function much like gospel hymns, forms of praise that can uplift viewers and intensify spiritual connections. Prayer and gospel music are, in fact, an integral part of Tramaine’s studio practice. Through them, she allows herself to become a vessel, receiving images that she then develops into large-scale portraits. Tramaine is outspoken about her faith. The edges of her canvases often feature short sermon-like phrases while the material descriptions of her work include words such as “Holy Spirit” or “Yeshua”—the Hebrew name for Jesus. According to the artist, “It’s not my hand alone that delivers the work….Without Yeshua, it’s just paint.” While Tramaine’s art is founded in spiritual practice, it is also shaped by her identity and personal history. Her mature work, which is influenced by biblical verses and other religious texts, evolved from a childhood practice of sketching in hymn books and Bibles while attending church. Her abstract portraits of Black subjects—which are meant to transcend race, gender, and class—reflect a keen social and political awareness. Through shape, definition, color, exaggerated features and multiple perspectives, Tramaine attempts to capture the spirit of an underrepresented population. By depicting Christian subjects, especially, with Black faces, she also questions the history of representation. Narrative is just as important as color, line, and form. The artist studies and absorbs the details of various biblical stories and characters, finding ways to visually translate such emotions as fear, love, judgment, acceptance or non-acceptance. These she offers to viewers as models of perseverance, inspiration, fortitude, and encouragement. In Charleston, Tramaine produced an extraordinary variety and number of artworks, ranging from found objects to text-based wall and textile art. Known for her powerful use of color, in Charleston she explored the emotional weight and suggestive power of indigo blue. One of these works was later included in Indigo: Variations in Blue, an exhibition at Charleston’s historic Aiken-Rhett House Museum. In an interesting parallel, self-expression through word and color became the main focus of three workshops that she held for local Burke High School students. While Tramaine continued her portrait practice, she approached it in novel ways—experimenting with scale, full-length forms, self-portraiture, and applications of untraditional media. In many ways, these diverse works were documents of her residency—of her daily prayers, intense self-reflection, attendance at local churches, personal interactions, confrontations with Southern history, and recollections of her own ancestral roots in South Carolina. About the Artist: Genesis Tramaine was born in New York City in 1983 and currently lives and works in New Jersey. She earned her M.S from Pace University and B.S from Utica College of Syracuse University. About the Artist: Genesis Tramaine was born in New York City in 1983 and currently lives and works in New Jersey. She earned her M.S from Pace University and B.S from Utica College of Syracuse University. She has exhibited nationally and internationally, most recently in a solo exhibition, Facing Giants, at Le Consortium, Dijon, France. In 2023, Tramaine was the subject of the solo exhibition Everything is Now at the Center for Contemporary Art Vancouver (CICA), and was included in The Echo of Picasso at the Museo Picasso Malaga, Spain. In 2020 Tramaine was the featured Artist-in-Residence at the Rubell Museum, Miami, where she also exhibited in a solo show. Her work resides in prominent museum collections, including the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami; the National Gallery of Art, Washington DC; the Rubell Museum, Miami; the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville; the Hirshhorn Museum, Washington DC; the Buffalo AKG Art Museum, NY. READ MORE READ LESS Select Images FSA Inspired Garden Party + Open Studios, 2025. FSA Inspired Garden Party + Open Studios, 2025. FSA Inspired Garden Party + Open Studios, 2025. Genesis Tramaine, "King Tide," 2025. FSA Inspired Garden Party + Open Studios, 2025. FSA Inspired Garden Party + Open Studios, 2025. FSA Inspired Garden Party + Open Studios, 2025. FSA Inspired Garden Party + Open Studios, 2025. Clinging unto the Lord, 2021. Acrylic, oil stick, pastel, Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, and The Holy Spirit on canvas 72 x 48 in. National Gallery of Art, 2022.30.1 Evidence of Grace, 2020. Acrylic, gouache, oil stick, and oil pastel on canvas, and Yahweh! 96 x 72 in. Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, 2021.22 Saint with Bethel Vision, 2021. Acrylic, spray paint, Hurricane Ida Rain (2021 storm water), Holy Spirit, and oil sticks 72 x 72 in. Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, 2021.34.1 "No Words Amen" (installation view), 2025, "Indigo: Variations in Blue" at the Aiken-Rhett House, Spring 2026. Precious Jennings, Genesis Tramaine, and Monique de La Tour at the Aiken-Rhett House, Spring 2026. Read ‘I’ve Learned to Lean on God’: Interview with Genesis Tramaine | artnet Genesis Tramaine | ARTnews View Inspired Garden Party + Open Studios | Fall 2025 Genesis Tramaine | Almine Rech In Conversation with Genesis Tramaine | Phong H. Bui Gimme Some Sugar | Genesis Tramaine Monograph Indigo: Variations in Blue Aiken-Rhett House Museum, Charleston, SC March 13–June 28, 2026