Ed Trask

@heidetrepanier says that the new Universal Arts Teaching Gallery (@universalarts_rva ) will be more than just a much-needed new visual art space. “The sky’s the limit right now,” says the nationally-shown abstract painter and educator. “I’m looking to see what I can get away with.” Trepanier is spearheading this new 700-square-foot Shockoe Bottom space with two other prominent Richmond artists, muralist and painter @edtrask , co-founder of the RVA Street Art Festival, and sculptor and plein air specialist @mattlively , also a muralist. The gallery’s inaugural exhibition is slated for May 23, with a group show of up-and-coming artists alongside familiar names such as Sally Bowring, Joan Gaustad, Sharon Shapiro and Bonnie Collura. According to a press release, “these works reflect the gallery’s founding commitment to honoring both emerging voices and established practitioners, placing early and late-career artists and artists with different media/backgrounds in meaningful conversation with one another.” But the exhibit isn’t really indicative of what patrons should expect, says Lively. “This first show is to alert Richmond to what we’re doing. These are artists who are supportive of this, established people who don’t have exclusives to another gallery.” Read more at the link in our bio.

A fresh batch of our “Dear Richmond” community journals just landed, laser etched by our friends at Richmond-based Big Secret. You’ll find these one-of-a-kind journals as part of our creative writing and journaling project tucked away in the James River Park System. If you look closely, you might come across a hidden vintage mailbox near park headquarters. Inside, one of these Dear Richmond journals will be waiting for you to leave something behind. A note to the city. A love letter. A call to action. Or simply the words you didn’t know you needed to say. And speaking of hidden gems, if you haven’t met Jason Lefton, founder of Big Secret here in Richmond, do yourself a favor and check out @bigsecretstudio . His studio in Jackson Ward has long been a space for collaboration and inspiration for us. We’ve seen countless ideas take shape there through laser etching, cutting, and marking across a range of materials that we didn’t think possible. #dearrichmond #communityjournal #journaling #jrps #richmondgrid

Somewhat recent frames. @sarahboytsyoder @strongstuff @edtrask @gracepopp @chrispaulthompson @lightbody.studio #gravitasgallery #fineart #pictureframing #rva #rvaartist

Voices of Perseverance by @edtrask and @jfordtheartist with @MendingWallsRVA #MuralTime 📸 📷 Photography MuralPhotography 📍 N Henry St and 422 W Broad St, Downtown, Richmond ✊🏾✊🏿🔵✊🏼✊🏽🟡 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - #JusticeBringsPeace #BlackLivesMatter BLM ClenchedFist WeWillNotBeSilent JohnLewis ShirleyChisolm JesseOwens DorothyHeight EllaFitzgerald MuhammadAli Graff GraffitiArt OutdoorGallery #RVAStreetArt #RichmondMurals

@edtrask // @mattlively

Resolution 2026 Read Outstanding Books My husband, Max Watman’s epic antebellum odyssey—Tomorrow, The War—comes out Jan. 6, 2026. Join Max and the talented Ed Trask in conversation at Fountain Bookstore on Tues, Jan 6 at 6 pm. If you can’t make it, you can find it at bookstores everywhere (including RVA’s fabulous Fountain Bookstore) and at link in bio. Get READy to start the year smart and inspired. It is everything. @fountainbookstore @maxwatman @edtrask RSVP link in bio.

Planning a low-key NYE? 🎨 Bundle up, get outdoors, and explore Richmond’s mural scene with a self-guided mural tour around the city! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ What began as a public art initiative in 2012 has helped Richmond grow into one of RVA’s most distinctive cultural attractions. Over the past decade, local and internationally recognized artists have contributed to a vibrant mural scene, and the city now features 150+ murals across its neighborhoods—turning streets and buildings into a dynamic open-air gallery. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 🎨 Downtown Richmond Murals Use a citywide mural map to discover bold, colorful works that celebrate creativity, culture, and community. Map by @murals_in_richmond (find the link to the map in their bio) ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 🤝 @mendingwallsrva A powerful public art project pairing artists of different backgrounds to create murals that reflect where we are as a society—and how we move forward through understanding, collaboration, and connection. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 📖 Local Read: @muralsofrichmond Want to take the experience home? Murals of Richmond is a 222-page hardcover coffee-table book edited by Richmond-based artist and muralist Mickael Broth, aka @thenightowl . Featuring nearly 300 full-color photos and 70 artist interviews, the book documents the city’s public art explosion over the past decade and celebrates the impact of art that’s accessible to everyone. ($25 at @worldofmirth ) ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 📸 Share your mural finds using #therichmondexperience to be featured! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Mural 1: 🎨 @thenightowl & @surehandsigns 📍5 W 15th St (Manchester) Mural 2: 🎨 @herrsuite 📍 @natesbagels Mural 3: 🎨 @edtrask 📍 @reservoirdistillery Mural 4: 🎨 @noahscalin @adrawingtable 📸 @katjonescreative 📍 211 N 18th St (Shockoe Bottom) ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #therichmondexperience #richmondva #rvamurals #mendingwalls

Riparian. Live now through the end of January. Book your private viewing with the link in our bio. 🖼️

What a great roadtrip to DC last night! We saw the amazing work of @caesarsopenstudio and @edtrask at @longviewgallery . Our dear friend and avid art collector, @fowler_sarah , gave us a personal tour of her private collection in the back gallery, including 3 of my pieces! Thanks to @adriennestein for being my sidekick..🥰

I like to refer to myself as a “reluctant business owner”. This is, in no way, shade to the brilliant - but tiny - percentage of business owners who are Black women (0.91% as of 2020, in case you were wondering). I have seen people misuse and abuse organizational power before, and I didn’t want to be named among those who completely switched up once their name was attached to something great. I just wanted to be a therapist who, as my ethics beckon me to, “above all, do no harm”. This is probably why I started Sage Wellness, sitting in the middle of my dining room at around 1 am on a Tuesday. Hovered in front of the light of my computer screen. Terrified, really. Because I didn't want it modeled after anything I’d already been exposed to. I’m not special, though. Not technically. I am a person wanting to do good in the world. And so, these past three years as a “reluctant business owner” looked like setting guardrails around my soul and core intentions. My checks and balances aren’t primarily financial; they are psychological, emotional, and spiritual. I’m getting accustomed to Trust, Abundance, and Integrity. Sage means “a profoundly wise person”. It isn’t uncommon for many folk to approach a therapist to learn, grow, and heal. They assume the source of wisdom comes from the therapist, the one with expertise. To many of my clients’ surprise, I clarify that I intend to help them become their own sages. The wise person? Has been themselves, all along. I look ahead into this next year of stewardship with excitement and profound peace. And I am thankful for the constant reminder - I even had one today - that I have never been alone a single day while on this journey. Happy 3 Year Anniversary to the small but mighty Sage Wellness, LLC. Important Note: Richmond is such a beautiful city to do this work. Major shout out to the artists/creatives who not only beautify our city, but amplify the beauty in our diversity. Please check out @venturerichmond for a full map of the 150 (!) murals across our city. The two murals represented here are from the brilliant “Auz” Miles @auz_can & Ed Trask @edtrask #sagewellnessva #therapistthoughts #therapistsofinstagram

❤️Day 900/1000 Days of Art Challenge Happy and blessed! WASHINGTON, D.C., December 6, 2025. Salvadoran-born artist Karlisima Rodas-Israel is honored to participate in The James McLaughlin Staff Art Show at The Phillips Collection in Dupont Circle, located at 1600 21st Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20009. The exhibition, featuring work by approximately 40 talented staff members, is on view in Lower Level 2 through February 8, 2026. General admission is $20. Karlisima Rodas-Israel is exhibiting her oil painting "Reaching Out Towards Heaven" (24" x 30"), which portrays a young man extending his arms upward toward the sky and toward Heaven. The work expresses a profound sense of prayer, faith, longing for freedom, release, healing, hope and spiritual surrender. Karlisima wishes to infuse us with hope and optimism in the midst hardship and tribulations. Created from a photograph the artist took in 2004 in Boulder, Colorado, the painting serves not only as an artistic vision, but also as a heartfelt message of resilience—meant to inspire strength and hope, and to remind us that we are not alone in these difficult and turbulent times. It is a visual prayer, a call for help, and a reminder that help often arises from within us, when we listen deeply and reach out with faith. Through hope and inner guidance, we can find solutions to our challenges and see the light at the end of the tunnel, and thus discover the Light that dwells within us. The artist is also seeking to reconnect with the young man who posed for the original photograph 21 years ago in Boulder, Colorado. If you recognize him based on the painting or accompanying image, please contact Karlisima at [email protected]. All are warmly invited to visit the exhibition and experience the artwork in person. December 6, 2025. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #karlisima #faith #artgallery #contemporaryart #artcollectors karlisima karlisimarodas karlisima1 womenintheartsmuseum womenartists abstractart painting

Join us as we welcome Fountain Friend Max in conversation with local artist Ed Trask at the store, where they will be talking about Max's first novel! #VirginiaAuthor #ThingsToDoRVA #IndieBookstore