Visible Records is an artist and community run space situated in a large warehouse in Charlottesville, Virginia. that houses a variety of working-class businesses, initiatives, and nonprofits such as Infinite Repeats, Food Not Bombs, Charlottesville Tool Library, and Siller Pollinator Co.
Composed of artist studios, a gallery, a large common area and a community garden. Our mission has been organically emerging in the years since we opened in 2021. At the moment our mission centers on the intersection of visual art and social justice movements. We support the role of the arts and artists in worldmaking and dreaming toward a liberated and livable future. Visible Records is guided by values of reciprocity, generosity, and co-liberation.
Visible Records maintains a non-transactional common area where the community conceptualizes and facilitates programming. This commons is based on plurality and polyculture-used in many ways by people of different origins, experiences and backgrounds. Programming includes potlucks, independent music, artists markets, poetry critique, prisoner letter writing, workshops, artist talks, mutual aid efforts, film screenings, book clubs, and beyond.
Visible Records is also home to F12 Infoshop, The Little Free Fridge; a fridge and pantry space that is freely accessible 24/7. Common Field Gardens which includes Solitary Gardens grow food and friendships centered on values of food sovereignty and prison abolition.
Visible Records programming survives and sustains through grants and the support of donations. If you’d like to support working artists and our free community programming, please head over to our donation page.
/ FIND US
Visible / Records
1740 Broadway Street,
Charlottesville, VA 22902
/ HOURS
Our Gallery is open to the public:
Tuesday—Saturday 11AM to 5PM
To schedule an appointment outside of these hours or to arrange a guided tour, please email studio@visible-records.com
/ CONTACT US
Email: studio@visible-records.com
Instagram: @visible_records
/ 1740 BROADWAY
Visible Records is housed within a multi-use warehouse in the Carlton/Belmont neighborhood of Charlottesville, VA. The property was home to a data management company called Data Visible that employed over 70 working class people from 1966 until 2014, when the company closed. The building is currently owned by Data Visible’s parent company, VAS of Virginia Inc. Rather than sell the property to developers, the family heirs resolved to convert the 55,000 sqft warehouse into affordable fabrication, office and retail space for Charlottesville’s working class entrepreneurs. Morgan Ashcom, an artist and the warehouse’s current manager, spearheaded this conversion, as well as the construction of Visible Records. 1740 Broadway St. is now home to Visible Records, Decipher Brewing, Infinite Repeats, Dovetail Design & Cabinetry, Patois Cider, Metal Inc., A2D Appliance Sales, Dreadhead, The Freeman Artist Residency, numerous recording studios and more than 20 other small businesses.
We know that our community is the middle of an affordable housing crisis and that part of that crisis is fueled by the development of previously industrial spaces into expensive housing, retail, and restaurants. At 1740 Broadway and Visible Records, we are committed to maintaining the space as an affordable and diverse place for people to accomplish their dreams. For more information on the rising cost of living in Charlottesville and efforts to combat it, visit: https://affordablehousingcville.org/.