COLLABORATIONS
PAST AND PRESENT
Over the course of a five-year relationship with the Institute Of Contemporary Art at VCU, FOR THE FEM IN YOU successfully curated and implemented several culturally impactful programs that attracted thousands of attendees from across Virginia and beyond. Through intentional arts programming rooted in community, inclusivity, and creative expression, we brought initiatives such as LAST STOP, The Afro-Vegan Social, Holiday Soirée, BLACK AF – An Unapologetic Celebration of Black Herstory, Hand-Made in RVA: The Market, and FEMFEST to life within the museum space. These programs highlighted emerging and established artists, musicians, wellness practitioners, designers, chefs, and creatives while helping expand accessibility and visibility for Black women, LGBTQ+ artists, and underserved communities within Richmond’s cultural arts landscape.
FOR THE FEM IN YOU hosted the Afro-Vegan Social for four consecutive years at the The Branch Museum of Architecture and Design, where we were warmly welcomed and supported by former Director Heather Hart. Throughout those years, the event attracted hundreds of attendees while spotlighting regional vegan chefs and restaurants, local DJs, interpretive dance performances, emerging fashion designers, and small businesses from across the community. The collaboration helped transform the museum grounds into a vibrant cultural gathering space centered around sustainability, creativity, wellness, and joyful community connection.
FOR THE FEM IN YOU partnered with Chesterfield County Parks and Recreation to host the Black and Free Kwanzaa Expo for three consecutive years, welcoming hundreds of attendees in celebration of culture, community, and collective empowerment. The event highlighted the importance of intentionally showcasing and centering marginalized and underserved businesses while activating performing artists, featuring regional chefs, and creating meaningful opportunities to educate the public about the principles and significance of Kwanzaa. The programming also featured our wellness activation, the Zen Zone, while maintaining our longstanding commitment to healthy vegan foods, intentional nourishment, and holistic care throughout the experience.
FOR THE FEM IN YOU proudly partnered with the The Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia for two consecutive years to host the Afro-Vegan Social, one of Richmond’s leading cultural experiences centered around plant-based living, sustainability, fashion, and community. This collaboration created a powerful intersection between Black history, health, and contemporary culture while attracting attendees from across the region. Together, we cultivated an intentional space that highlighted Black-owned vegan businesses, local DJs and hosts, emerging fashion designers, and small businesses while encouraging healthier lifestyles and deeper community connection.
FOR THE FEM IN YOU partnered with Afrikana Film Festival to launch the Afro-Vegan Social at the Institute for Contemporary Art at VCU alongside Starry Night, which featured a screening of A Raisin in the Sun. The activation blended film, fashion, food, and music through a vibrant fashion showcase featuring designs by Kamala Bhagat, The Legendary Ms. Ruth, and other emerging designers while highlighting local DJs and cuisine from across the Diaspora. The collaboration attracted a diverse audience and further cemented the Afro-Vegan Social as one of Richmond’s most unique cultural experiences centered around creativity, sustainability, and community.
FOR THE FEM IN YOU partnered with In Your Ear Studios and Shockoe Records after they thoughtfully received and responded to our advocacy concerns surrounding the visibility of Black women within Richmond’s live music ecosystem. Through this collaboration, we curated six separate dates for the Shockoe Sessions Live Series, intentionally highlighting Black women artists across multiple genres of music while creating meaningful performance opportunities and professional visibility. Featured artists included NIIASII, Kaay Taurus, Tiara & Andrew, Lioness Jade, Hannah Ashiyrah, Charnelle, BeShaun, Nyasia Monroe, Shon Davis, Kia Bennett, ShaelaSoul, and Alleviative Productions, a Black woman-owned production company led by Erica “Ease” Claiborne, who provided DJ services for BeShaun and the Women of Hip-Hop showcase. We worked closely with Reese, Thomas, Craig, and Carlos to help bring this vision to life, and the result was a powerful example of what intentional inclusion and collaboration can create within local music spaces. Be sure to check out the full performances and session recordings through the YouTube videos featured on our press page.
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In May of 2019, the life of 9-year-old Markiya Dickson was tragically taken by a stray bullet, leaving a lasting impact on the Richmond community. FOR THE FEM IN YOU partnered with Friends of Fonticello Park during a special memorial ceremony where the playground was officially renamed the Markiya Dickson Imagination Zone in her honor. As part of the activation, FOR THE FEM IN YOU provided free arts and crafts activities for children attending the ceremony, creating a space for creativity, reflection, and community care during an emotional moment of remembrance.
DIVERSITY RICHMOND
FOR THE FEM IN YOU partnered with Diversity Richmond to bring the Black Arts Market to life in 2025, creating an intentional platform centered around Black creativity, entrepreneurship, and cultural expression. The collaboration welcomed a diverse range of local artists, makers, designers, wellness practitioners, DJs, and small businesses while providing meaningful economic opportunities and community visibility for underserved creatives throughout the Richmond area. It was also during this programming that the Zen Zone was born—our wellness activation designed to center and uplift POC womxn wellness practitioners through intentional spaces for rest, grounding, healing, and care. Together, we cultivated a vibrant and inclusive experience rooted in art, connection, joy, and the continued empowerment of Black and LGBTQ+ communities within Richmond’s cultural landscape.
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Art Gallery - Historic Jackson Ward
FOR THE FEM IN YOU curated its first major art exhibition featuring esteemed artist Y'Vonne Ferguson, generating over $20,000 in art sales while creating meaningful visibility and economic opportunity for Black artistry in Richmond. During this collaboration, we also launched Chromatic Jazz, a live music series highlighting local jazz and soul musicians and singers, alongside curated wellness activations that encouraged intentional community gathering and creative exchange. Through collaborative partnerships with RVA Moon Market, Gallery5, and RVA First Fridays, the programming helped empower local artists, emerging creatives, and small businesses while contributing to Richmond’s evolving cultural arts landscape.
FOR THE FEM IN YOU has maintained a strong collaborative relationship with RVA Moon Market through intentional community programming centered around visibility, creativity, and economic opportunity for BIPOC small businesses and artists. Together, we have worked to ensure that local makers, artisans, creatives, and entrepreneurs—particularly Black women and marginalized communities—are meaningfully represented and supported within Richmond’s evolving arts landscape. Our collaborations have also highlighted womxn DJs, live creative activations, and community-centered programming during RVA First Fridays, helping transform the monthly art walk into a more inclusive and culturally reflective experience for the city. Special shoutout to Lauren, who we absolutely adore, for consistently helping cultivate spaces rooted in creativity, care, collaboration, and genuine community connection.
RVA REST FEST
FOR THE FEM IN YOU partnered with RVA Rest Fest to implement the Zen Zone, a thoughtfully curated wellness activation designed to provide festival attendees with a safe space to rest, reset, hydrate, and ground themselves throughout the event experience. Through this collaboration, we centered and amplified POC womxn wellness practitioners offering services such as massage and stretch therapy, ear acupuncture, doula resources, reiki, and holistic wellness support while maintaining free hydration access for the community throughout the day. The partnership reflected a shared commitment to prioritizing mental health, physical wellness, accessibility, and intentional care within Richmond’s growing festival and arts culture.
LEMEIRT PARK: SIKA & HARUN
Years before the pandemic, FOR THE FEM IN YOU became deeply connected to the cultural ecosystem of Leimert Park through community work, photography, creative collaboration, and relationship-building rooted in trust and cultural preservation. During that time, we worked closely alongside Baba Sika at his historic shop, volunteering within the space while also producing photoshoots and creative work for Sika himself. More than a collaborator, Sika became one of our greatest inspirations and protectors within Los Angeles’ often predatory entrepreneurial landscape—pouring wisdom, guidance, and care into us while teaching us about the neighborhood’s historic significance and sharing personal stories connected to some of Black Hollywood’s most legendary actors, singers, comedians, and jazz musicians. The opportunity to receive that kind of exchange, knowledge, and protection from an elder over 80 years old is something we will cherish forever.
It was also within Leimert Park that the Protect Black Women movement truly began to expand for us, quickly receiving support from influential figures throughout Los Angeles—many of whom we connected with through Harun Coffee. Far more than a coffee shop, Harun became a gathering space for affluent intellectuals, artists, organizers, and creatives to commune, exchange ideas, and build community over meaningful conversation and exceptional coffee. Its owner, Chace, immediately welcomed us with open arms, offering genuine safe space and becoming like a big brother to our organization. Through that support, we were able to launch our Protect Black Woman takeover activations that centered successful artists from the community, highlighted Black womxn DJs, and featured vegan chefs and culturally rooted food experiences—all while building intentional space for Black creativity, joy, safety, and collaboration in one of the most historic Black cultural neighborhoods in the country.
In May of 2019, the life of 9-year-old Markiya Dickson was tragically taken by a stray bullet, leaving a lasting impact on the Richmond community. FOR THE FEM IN YOU partnered with Friends of Fonticello Park during a special memorial ceremony where the playground was officially renamed the Markiya Dickson Imagination Zone in her honor. As part of the activation, FOR THE FEM IN YOU provided free arts and crafts activities for children attending the ceremony, creating a space for creativity, reflection, and community care during an emotional moment of remembrance.
DIVERSITY RICHMOND
FOR THE FEM IN YOU partnered with Diversity Richmond to bring the Black Arts Market to life in 2025, creating an intentional platform centered around Black creativity, entrepreneurship, and cultural expression. The collaboration welcomed a diverse range of local artists, makers, designers, wellness practitioners, DJs, and small businesses while providing meaningful economic opportunities and community visibility for underserved creatives throughout the Richmond area. It was also during this programming that the Zen Zone was born—our wellness activation designed to center and uplift POC womxn wellness practitioners through intentional spaces for rest, grounding, healing, and care. Together, we cultivated a vibrant and inclusive experience rooted in art, connection, joy, and the continued empowerment of Black and LGBTQ+ communities within Richmond’s cultural landscape.
Art Gallery - Historic Jackson Ward
FOR THE FEM IN YOU curated its first major art exhibition featuring esteemed artist Y'Vonne Ferguson, generating over $20,000 in art sales while creating meaningful visibility and economic opportunity for Black artistry in Richmond. During this collaboration, we also launched Chromatic Jazz, a live music series highlighting local jazz and soul musicians and singers, alongside curated wellness activations that encouraged intentional community gathering and creative exchange. Through collaborative partnerships with RVA Moon Market, Gallery5, and RVA First Fridays, the programming helped empower local artists, emerging creatives, and small businesses while contributing to Richmond’s evolving cultural arts landscape.
FOR THE FEM IN YOU has maintained a strong collaborative relationship with RVA Moon Market through intentional community programming centered around visibility, creativity, and economic opportunity for BIPOC small businesses and artists. Together, we have worked to ensure that local makers, artisans, creatives, and entrepreneurs—particularly Black women and marginalized communities—are meaningfully represented and supported within Richmond’s evolving arts landscape. Our collaborations have also highlighted womxn DJs, live creative activations, and community-centered programming during RVA First Fridays, helping transform the monthly art walk into a more inclusive and culturally reflective experience for the city. Special shoutout to Lauren, who we absolutely adore, for consistently helping cultivate spaces rooted in creativity, care, collaboration, and genuine community connection.
FOR THE FEM IN YOU partnered with RVA Rest Fest to implement the Zen Zone, a thoughtfully curated wellness activation designed to provide festival attendees with a safe space to rest, reset, hydrate, and ground themselves throughout the event experience. Through this collaboration, we centered and amplified POC womxn wellness practitioners offering services such as massage and stretch therapy, ear acupuncture, doula resources, reiki, and holistic wellness support while maintaining free hydration access for the community throughout the day. The partnership reflected a shared commitment to prioritizing mental health, physical wellness, accessibility, and intentional care within Richmond’s growing festival and arts culture.
Years before the pandemic, FOR THE FEM IN YOU became deeply connected to the cultural ecosystem of Leimert Park through community work, photography, creative collaboration, and relationship-building rooted in trust and cultural preservation. During that time, we worked closely alongside Baba Sika at his historic shop, volunteering within the space while also producing photoshoots and creative work for Sika himself. More than a collaborator, Sika became one of our greatest inspirations and protectors within Los Angeles’ often predatory entrepreneurial landscape—pouring wisdom, guidance, and care into us while teaching us about the neighborhood’s historic significance and sharing personal stories connected to some of Black Hollywood’s most legendary actors, singers, comedians, and jazz musicians. The opportunity to receive that kind of exchange, knowledge, and protection from an elder over 80 years old is something we will cherish forever.
It was also within Leimert Park that the Protect Black Women movement truly began to expand for us, quickly receiving support from influential figures throughout Los Angeles—many of whom we connected with through Harun Coffee. Far more than a coffee shop, Harun became a gathering space for affluent intellectuals, artists, organizers, and creatives to commune, exchange ideas, and build community over meaningful conversation and exceptional coffee. Its owner, Chace, immediately welcomed us with open arms, offering genuine safe space and becoming like a big brother to our organization. Through that support, we were able to launch our Protect Black Woman takeover activations that centered successful artists from the community, highlighted Black womxn DJs, and featured vegan chefs and culturally rooted food experiences—all while building intentional space for Black creativity, joy, safety, and collaboration in one of the most historic Black cultural neighborhoods in the country.
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