Santa Fe Art Institute

Bex McCharen

Bex McCharen (they/them) is an interdisciplinary artist, fashion designer and founder of the inclusive fashion label Chromat. Their work creatively reimagines sustainable futures, climate optimism and queer joy. They studied at the University of Virginia School of Architecture and are based in Miami, FL.

McCharen was awarded the Smithsonian National Design Award in 2021, was recognized by Forbes 30 under 30 “People Who Are Reinventing the World” and was honored in the OUT 100 as one of the LGBTQ’s communities’ brightest voices. Their work has been profiled in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Vogue and Elle. Collaborations include Beyoncé, Intel, Disney, Reebok, MAC and MIT.

They gave a TED Talk on inclusive design, and have spoken at SXSW, Harvard, Parsons, MIT, CFDA, Pratt, Fashion Institute of Technology and Tulane. They have been an artist-in-residence at MASS MoCA, the Anderson Center, the Studios of Key West, Santa Fe Art Institute and the Blue Mountain Center, NY. McCharen curated ‘Queer Joy’ at the MoMA PS1 and their work was recently on view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.