WE are an artist collective who examine contemporary events, historical narratives and the materiality around religion and its impact on global issues such as environment, gender, race, education and class. By use of myriad, creative mediums, WE hope to foster complicated dialogues which inspire action for a more harmonious community.
Come on this journey with us. Our website is getting a little spring cleaning to properly receive you. In the meantime, to learn a bit about the bones of our organization, take a look at the information found on this page and reach out if you have a question or idea!
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Clifford Chambliss, III
Clifford “Cliff” Chambliss III is a multidisciplinary visual artist, Founder and Principal of TRINITY. Through the mediums of photography, fiber, glass he explores the obscure narratives of the African diaspora. His works employ both direct messaging and nuanced imagery to foster a dialogue around the history of Black social inequities. A native of Central Virginia, his practice is informed by place, archival material and geospatial data.
One of the focal points of Cliff’s works is nature, drawing a thread with Black culture and offering counternarratives to stereotypes. For five years, he served as an Assistant Scoutmaster of a Boy Scout troop in Washington. D.C. where he made photographs of many of the Scout undertakings to show an alternative side to American themes, outdoorsmanship, and patriotism. Another focal point of his practice is social justice, creating bold and challenging art installations that target cultural and political institutions – using art as activism. He has worked with the arts activist group, Guerrilla Girls, and the Creative Justice Institute (sponsored by the Ford Foundation). During the racial reckoning summer of 2020, Cliff engaged with performance art at the Robert E. Lee monument in Richmond where he incorporated a sign that read “RUMORS OF WAR WASN’T A RUMOR,” offering commentary on the recently unveiled Rumors of War statue by Kehinde Wiley. He performed and protested shirtless, allowing his Black skin to complement the work and represent a host of meanings. That piece was subsequently acquired in July 2020 by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. Artists and individuals who inspire his practice are Gordon Parks, Howardena Pindell, Pete Souza, and Frederick Douglass.
Cliff is based in Richmond, VA and New Haven, CT, pursuing a Master of Divinity degree from Yale Divinity School with a focus in the visual arts, material cultures, and environmental justice. He is a dual-graduate of Hampton University (B.S. and M.B.A.) and received his J.D. from the Columbus School of Law at The Catholic University of America. Cliff is a member of the Kuumba African-American Quilters Guild, Yale Black Seminarians and American Glass Guild.
Founder + Principal
James Powell
James Powell is an editor, content producer and storyteller. Currently, James leads strategy, partnerships and editorial content for TRINITY. He was the Arts + Culture Editor and Head of Production for The Tenth, a global independent media company that documents the history, ideas and aesthetics of the African diaspora through an LGBTQ lens. Before working at The Tenth, James spent seven years at The Clinton Foundation helping to manage operations and the quarterly college internship program. James has served on young patron boards for VH1 Save the Music Foundation, the former Children’s Storefront School in Harlem, a tuition-free private school that has expanded to become Storefront Academy Charter Schools and volunteered as a special projects advisor for the Leslie Lohman Museum. He currently is a member of the Interfaith America Leadership Network which connects interfaith leaders to build on our nation’s key strength of religious diversity.
Head of Strategy, Partnerships + Editorial
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