Taking Shape is a survey of Nova Darkstar’s work from 2020 through 2025, a period of creative and personal transformation that encompassed their MFA degree program and coming out process as a trans. During this period their art practice served as a central means of unfolding and claiming their identity as Nova. With Taking Shape, Nova aims to create a safe, playful space that celebrates queerness and transness while encouraging all viewers to live the truth of who they are. The exhibit features sculpture, video, collage, and painting.

Nova Darkstar (they/them) is a multidisciplinary artist and musician committed to community building as an art form and art as a form of community building. Their practice explores themes of identity and belonging in the LGBTQIA+ community and beyond. Nova’s multimedia projects are often collaborative in nature, inviting viewers to participate in the work and bring it to fruition.

Nova holds an MFA in Visual Art from Lesley University and an MA in Counseling Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies. Nova Darkstar & their Invisible Band perform original dance music throughout the northeast. Nova Darkstar’s Guitar Galactica creates site-responsive improvised ambient music at a variety of sites and venues. I Dream a Prom Queen, a short documentary made in collaboration with Tania Barricklo, was an official selection for the 2024 New York Transgender Film Festival. Color Me Trans, a coloring book for teens and adults, was published in March 2025. Nova was the instigator and coordinator of Happy 80th, Marsha!, a two-week arts and cultural festival in Kingston, NY in August, 2025 that celebrated the life and legacy of trans icon Marsha P. Johnson. Recent gallery exhibitions include My Home is Your Home, a solo exhibit at M Galleries PNA (Washington, NJ) and group shows at Super Secret Projects (Beacon, NY), Gallery RAG (Gloucester, MA), and WAAM (Woodstock, NY).

The DRAW Gallery
24 Iwo Jima, Kingston, NY
May 16 – Jun 13

Opening Reception
Saturday, May 16, 5-7 pm

Artist Talk
Sunday, May 31, 4-5 pm

Closing Party featuring the Invisible Band
Saturday, June 13, 5-7 pm

Free and open to the public