Tucked away into a sprawling warehouse complex on Foster Street is a sort of one-stop shop for creatives and artists in the form of Chroma Boston Studios, which features a podcast studio, ready-made photography spaces, and everything in between.
Chroma is the vision of Jesica Chacon, a resident of Middleton who grew up in Los Angeles. Inside the business, those LA roots are evident — and on full display. Among the most striking features of the space is a graffiti mural reading “Chroma.” Another mural features “213,” a Los Angeles area code.
Chacon said she was inspired to open Chroma by her daughter, an upcoming model working in Boston.
“I was just thinking about having a space (for) kids like her where they can be themselves,” she said. “I wanted to build a space for photographers and videographers to rent. It’s like a self-service studio.”
Everything someone might need for, say, a photoshoot would already be waiting for them inside Chroma — so long as they supply the models and the camera. The space features a makeup room, a kitchenette, and a wardrobe area, and several rooms with different themes and set-ups to enable photoshoots.
In addition to the photo spaces and the podcast studio, Chroma also features a cyclorama room, which allows videographers to create the illusion they are operating in a larger space than they are. That room is already among the most popular spaces at the business.
Chacon and Chroma were celebrated by the Peabody Area Chamber of Commerce last week with a ribbon cutting, though the business has already been open for months.
During the ribbon cutting, Mayor Ted Bettencourt called Chroma a “creative wonderland.”
“I congratulate you, Jes, on your vision and making this happen,” he said. “We want to be here to support you in any way we can and really happy to have you here, so congratulations and best of luck.”
The industrial space on Foster Street where Chroma is located was a blank canvas for Chacon as she sought to bring her vision to life. Chacon noted that many studios in New York City have a similar feel, making it a “perfect fit.”
Chroma certainly stands out in Peabody, but Chacon said it was the right place to bring her vision to life.
“I feel like people that come in here and work out of here, they love the space,” she said, nothing that a photographer has already booked the space five times and “keeps coming back” with her friends. “They create their own work, their projects, and they’re out. They love it.”
Many of the rooms in Chroma are interchangeable, with the opportunity for Chacon or those who visit the space to change up their look and feel for a particular project.
That variability really allows creativity to flourish, she said.
“It’s for creatives or (artists) or people that have different visions to come in here and create art, amazing photos, portraits,” Chacon said.
