The Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (CAM) announces an exhibition of new works by Dominic Chambers, the first in the artist’s hometown of St. Louis. The exhibition brings together a series of new large-scale paintings and sculpture by the artist, a rising star in the art world who has recently been featured on Forbes magazine’s “30 Under 30” list as one of the most promising artists of his generation. As part of the exhibition, CAM will also produce the first exhibition catalog of Chambers’ work. Dominic Chambers: Birthplace will be on view at CAM from September 8, 2023–February 11, 2024.

Chambers is known for his vibrant, evocative paintings that depict Black subjects in moments of contemplation and leisure. Consistent throughout his oeuvre is the rich interior lives of his subjects. At times restful and meditative, and other times scholarly and curious, his subjects are almost always spirited away by the magic of reading and respite. In his luminous and deeply absorbing paintings, Chambers has explored contemporary concerns around race, personal and imagined narratives, and the complexity of one’s interior life. As an artist and writer, Chambers often draws inspiration from critical voices within the Black literary canon—particularly the writings of W. E. B. Du Bois, Octavia Butler, and Zora Neale Hurston. These influences take visual form in Chambers’ surreal landscapes and psychologically arresting portraits that present meditations on stillness and a radical interiority for his figures.

In Birthplace, Chambers recalls the spaces which facilitated his inner awakening as an artist and nurtured his imagination. Classrooms, playgrounds, libraries, and basketball courts are all represented within the exhibition, and each holds significant meaning to the artist’s origin story. The works are invitations to reflect upon and celebrate environments essential to our social development and collective imagination.

This exhibition is generously supported in part by George Wells, Barbara and Richard Rothschild, Anonymous, Ferring Family Foundation, Ann R. Ruwitch and John Fox Arnold, and the Whitaker Foundation. The exhibition publication is underwritten by the Jessica and Kelvin Beachum Family Collection. Special thanks to Lehmann Maupin. The artist talk is sponsored by the Robert Lehman Foundation.

Dominic Chambers: Birthplace is organized for the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis by Wassan Al-Khudhairi, former Ferring Foundation Chief Curator.

Image: Dominic Chambers, Fairground Park (the shadowy place), 2022. Oil on linen, 84 x 72 inches. Courtesy the artist and Lehmann Maupin, New York, Hong Kong, Seoul, and London. Photo courtesy Daniel Kukla.