CALL FOR ARTISTS  
WHEN THE WALLS ANSWER 
Fort Frederik Museum | Opening May 30, 2026 
 
Conceived and curated by DLAM Chief Curator and VIAC advisory member Monica Marin, 
the exhibition brings together works by established and emerging Virgin Islands artists, 
including students, whose works engage architecture as a tangible enduring archive of 
identity and cultural memory. Presented during Cultural Preservation Month (May), the 
exhibition reflects on how the built environment carries the imprint of the people who 
shaped it, and how those stories continue to shape Virgin Islanders’ identity. 
 
Historic towns across the Virgin Islands serve as repositories of cultural knowledge, where 
social, political, and economic histories are embedded in streets, structures, and spatial 
design.  From the architectural relics of the colonial era, to the vernacular homes emerging 
from Free Black communities in the Free Gut and Savan neighborhoods that proudly reflect 
resistance and reinvention post-emancipation, the built environment preserves the lived 
history of the Virgin Islands. Gerville René Larsen’s discourse-shifting artwork and cultural 
preservation advocacy paved the way for us to look beyond the edifices of buildings to a 
more humanized perspective and deeper understanding of the people behind the places. He 
illuminated the African-Caribbean legacies embedded in the built environment.   
 
Architectural elements such as gingerbread fretwork, wrought-iron lattice screens, steep-
pitched hip roofs, row houses, verandahs, courtyards, and climate-responsive design reflect 
a creolized visual language rooted in West African iconography, building traditions and 
knowledge systems, reshaped through local knowledge, materials and environmental 
necessity.  
 
This exhibition invites artists to explore architecture not only as a synthesis of form and 
function, but as cultural inheritance and as an expression of national identity. How can 
architecture and design reveal the cultural memory embedded in place? How do buildings 
speak to histories of resilience, multiculturalism and creative invention? In what ways do 
contemporary pressures such as climate change, development, gentrification, and 
generational land loss impact the preservation of these spaces, and their communities? 
 
We seek works that engage the architectural and cultural landscape of the Virgin Islands 
through research, storytelling, and material exploration. Submissions may interpret 
historically or architecturally significant sites, examine vernacular architectural traditions, 
or reflect on the evolving identity of our built environment. Artists are encouraged to 
consider how their work can reclaim narrative, challenge colonial frameworks, and imagine 
pathways for preservation and self-determination. 
 
All media are welcome, including painting, drawing, photography, mixed media, sculpture, 
installation, and woodworking. 
 
Important Dates 
• 
Artist Call Opens: Monday, April 13, 2026 
• 
Proposal Submittal Deadline: Monday, May 11, 2026 
• 
Artwork Drop-off:  Monday, May 25, 2025 
• 
Exhibition Opening: Saturday, May 30, 2026, at Fort Frederik Museum 
 
Submission Requirements 
• 
Artist bio (max 250 words) 
• 
Project statement (250–500 words) describing engagement with 
exhibition themes 
• 
Images of proposed or completed work (with title, medium, and 
dimensions) 
Submit to: Monica Marin, DLAM Chief Curator at monica.marin@dpnr.vi.gov 
 
Presented by The Virgin Islands Architecture Center (VIAC) | DPNR-Division of Libraries, 
Archives & Museums | State Historic Preservation Office | Historic Preservation Commission, 
 and funded in part by the Virgin Islands Council on the Arts