By Biba Adams, Staff Writer & Report for America corps member
Across Detroit, WOMXNHOUSE will transform homes and public spaces into places for storytelling, reflection, celebration, conversation, and connection. Through immersive art experiences and community activations, we invite you to experience deeply personal stories that connect to the larger realities facing women across America today.
Detroiters are invited to experience immersive installations and contemporary works created by the WOMXNHOUSE 2026 cohort across two womxn-owned Detroit Art Houses.
This year’s theme OUR STORIES. OUR VOICES. OUR SPACE explores what it means to be a woman in America today.
The WOMXNHOUSE 2026 cohort features:
Amara Murphy, Liv Furman, Michaela Nichelle, Olivia Eshe Holt, Britney Simone, Anjil Muhammad, Lisa S. Anderson, Lei’anna Nicole, Jozie Bullard, and Nailah Jackson.
Established in Detroit in 2021 by artist, curator and cultural organizer Asia Hamilton and Laura Earle, WOMXNHOUSE is an artist residency and exhibition program created to provide women and nonbinary artists with space, resources, visibility and opportunities to develop ambitious new work.
What began inside Hamilton’s childhood home has evolved into a growing Detroit-based platform connecting artists, cultural organizations and communities through exhibitions, public art, conversations and artist-centered programming.
The mission of WOMXNHOUSE 2026 is fostering a supportive and empowering community where women artists can thrive both personally and professionally.
Inspired by the legacy of the groundbreaking 1972 Womanhouse project, WOMXNHOUSE reimagines the concept through a contemporary Detroit lens. The program began inside Hamilton’s childhood home in Northwest Detroit, transforming domestic space into an immersive environment where artists could explore identity, womanhood, memory, health, family, race, community and the social realities affecting women.
“We offer a platform for their creative expressions and build a community that values diversity, equity, and inclusion in the arts. Through mentorship, exhibitions, and various programs, we aim to break down barriers and amplify the impact of women artists, fostering systemic change for a more inclusive cultural landscape. We celebrate the strength and creativity of women artists, ensuring their stories shape a brighter future.”
“At its core, WOMXNHOUSE works to dismantle systemic barriers within the arts by centering women’s rights, amplifying historically excluded voices and creating meaningful economic and professional opportunities for artists. The program also encourages artists to engage with critical social issues impacting women in America today,” says co-founder Asia Hamilton.
HOUSE EXHIBITIONS
Saturday, October 10 | 12–6 PM
On view through October 31
Visitors are invited to experience two site-specific exhibitions featuring work created by WOMXNHOUSE Detroit artists.
IRWIN HOUSE
2351 W. Grand Blvd.
Detroit, MI 48208
AKOMA
9185 Goodwin Street
Detroit, MI 48211
The exhibitions expand WOMXNHOUSE beyond its original residential setting, bringing artists into two Detroit cultural spaces and inviting audiences to experience work addressing personal, cultural and social themes through a range of contemporary artistic practices.
PARK ACTIVATION
Saturday, October 17 | 12–6 PM
WOMXNHOUSE moves outdoors for a free community celebration at Cook Park featuring a public art reveal, participating artists, community engagement and more.
COOK PARK
16101 Fenkell St.
Detroit, MI 48227
Rain Date: Sunday, October 18 | 12–6 PM
The Park Activation continues WOMXNHOUSE’s commitment to taking contemporary art outside traditional gallery walls and creating opportunities for residents to encounter art directly within Detroit neighborhoods.
FILM SCREENING + COMMUNITY CONVERSATION
Friday, October 23 | 6–9 PM
WOMXNHOUSE Detroit and Femology present The M Factor 2: Before the Pause, a film screening and community conversation bringing the realities of perimenopause into the open.
The evening expands WOMXNHOUSE’s mission beyond visual art by creating space for honest conversations about women’s bodies, aging, health and experiences that have historically been underrepresented or discussed in silence.
Through art, film and conversation, the event invites women to share knowledge, ask questions and see their experiences reflected within a larger community.
WOMXNHOUSE works to dismantle systemic barriers in the arts by centering women’s rights, amplifying historically excluded voices and engaging critical social issues impacting women in America today.
You can reach Biba at Biba.Adams@MIChronicle.com