The Shockoe Institute is a national organization headquartered in Richmond, Virginia dedicated to revealing the enduring impact of racial slavery on our shared American experience. Designed in partnership with Local Projects, this 12,000-square-foot educational facility serves as a place of learning, reflection, and action by examining the evolution of racial slavery in the Commonwealth, Richmond’s pivotal role in America’s internal trade in enslaved people, and the national ramifications of this history. Through an examination of America’s legacy of enslavement, the Shockoe Institute also seeks to play a constructive role in developing solutions to help create a better future.

Situated in Shockoe Bottom at Richmond’s historic Main Street Station, the Shockoe Institute is located in what was once an epicenter of the domestic slave trade. By blending historical context with modern design, the Shockoe Institute offers a reflective and educational experience to its visitors. The form of the design illustrates the recasting of this space’ use by overlaying organic curved walls of glass and maple onto the dark rigid structural grid of the train shed. Meandering lines along the floor that echo the ebbs and flows of Shockoe Creek and the twisting narratives of history guide visitors through the exhibit and into the Institute’s Lab where new connections between Richmond’s past and present will be revealed and a new future forged.