The award for First Place and recipient of the $3,000 prize in round one of the inaugural, 2026 Capital Square Prize, goes to Natalia Mejía Murillo (M.F.A ‘23). Murillo, (b. Bogotá, Colombia), is a visual artist whose work explores the notions of territory, repetition, trace and time through correspondences between astronomy, cartography and archaeology. She holds an MFA in Painting and Printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University, an MA in History and Theory of Art and a BFA from the National University of Colombia.
Artwork Details
Pillar, 2023
Blown and laser-engraved glass and reclaimed wood
78 x 6 x 4 in
Cadence, 2025
cast iron and pencil
12 x 8 x 8 in
Natalia Mejía Murillo (M.F.A ‘23) won first prize as a part of the Capital Square Prize, round one, juried exhibition. The Capital Prize, made possible through a partnership between VCUarts and Capital Square, presents an opportunity for Painting + Printmaking alumni to showcase their work within the Capital Square’s new Chasen building in Scott’s Addition. The Capital Prize exhibitions, featuring the work of prize finalists, celebrate the creative legacy of the building as the historic home of N. Chasen & Son paint company as it is transformed into Chasen, a vibrant new residential development bridging Richmond’s artistic past and future.
Artist Biogaphy
Mejía has been the recipient of awards including the Artistic Research Fellow at Folger Shakespeare Library, Washington DC (2025), 98th ANNUAL International Competition of The Print Center, Philadelphia (2023-2024), Kunstmuseum Reutlingen, Germany (2020) and Ministry of Culture of Colombia – Mexico (FONCA) (2017). She has also been awarded residencies at John Michael Kohler Arts Center (Sheboygan, Wisconsin, 2025); Fire Station (Doha, Qatar, 2024-2025), Radio 28, (Mexico City, 2024), MASS MoCA (North Adams, MA, 2023), Curatorial Program for Research (New York, 2023), Tajo Taller and Saenger Galería (Mexico City, 2023), Ellis-Beauregard Foundation (Maine, 2022), Fundació Miró Mallorca and Casa de Velázquez (Madrid, Spain, 2021), Fundación CIEC – Centro Internacional de la Estampa Contemporánea (Betanzos, Spain, 2014), The Strzemioski Academy of Fine Arts and Design (Łódz, Poland, 2014) among others.
Mejía’s work has been exhibited nationally and internationally. Recent exhibitions include Atlanta Contemporary (solo show, Atlanta, GA), Antioquia and Medellín International Art Biennial (Medellín, CO), Fire Station, (Doha, Qatar), D.D.D.D. Gallery (solo show, New York), Museo de Arte Carrillo Gil (Mexico City), Art Latinou Gallery (Mexico City), Revolver Galería (New York), Smack Mellon (New York), Casa Zirio, (Bogotá), Islera (Mexico City), The Print Center (Philadelphia), A+D Architecture and Design Museum (Los Angeles), Museo Moralense de Arte Contemporáneo (Cuernavaca, México), Casa de Velázquez (Madrid, Spain), Kunstmuseum (Reutlingen, Germany), among others.
She has taught at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogota, and Virginia Commonwealth University Doha, Qatar.