Arts, Culture and Sports
- In 2006, readers of Blue Ridge Outdoors magazine named the James River Park as the best urban park
- VCU School of Sculpture Ranked #1 in the country, ahead of Yale and the Art Institute of Chicago
- First Fridays Art Walk features 19 galleries and attracts thousands
From contemporary art to natural escapes, from incredible performances and festivals to nationally-recognized sporting events, downtown Richmond offers an unforgettable amenities package you just can’t find anywhere else, and best of all, many are free.
A Creative Palette
Exploring the visual and performing arts Downtown ranges from the expected to the completely unexpected, like the Tree Sweater outside of Quirk Gallery. Downtown Richmond has been attracting both local and national artists, performers and musicians for years and today a lot of Downtown’s vibe and energy comes from them.
1708 Gallery, Virginia’s first alternative non-profit gallery and one of the oldest artist run galleries in the country, anchors the arts scene in the Old and Historic Broad Street area where the First Fridays Art Walk takes place. Curated Culture has helped make First Fridays a monthly art happening in Downtown that attracts thousands to the Old and Historic Broad Street area. From blue hairs to blue hair, First Fridays is a must do. There are over 19 galleries in this area offering an intriguing mix of local, regional and nationally recognized artist ranging from established to emerging. Another area with a high concentration of arts and artists is at Plant Zero in Manchester , just over the 14th Street Bridge. Plant Zero Arts Center has 60 working studios for artists and Art Works, located the southwest corner of the same block, has 75 artists studios. Artpace, a non-profit gallery for the visual and performing arts, is also located at Plant Zero. These Manchester galleries have Fourth Fridays art penings. In addition to these two arts districts, you can find great art galleries and art shows throughout Downtown, as well as arts oriented special events such as the Visual Arts Center’s annual Craft and Design Show at the convention center. There are also all sorts of more organic arts happenings that just pop up.
There are three recording studios, dozens of clubs featuring live music and two new entertainment venues opening in 2007; The National Theatre and Toad’s Place. These new venues will feature national and region performers. Performing arts venues dot Downtown’s landscape: the Landmark Theatre, Theatre IV, the Richmond Ballet Studio and the Richmond Coliseum, which hosts performing arts oriented shows. There are also a number galleries and restaurants that serve as alternative performances spaces and a number of film festivals, the largest is the French Film Festival. The big news this year is that construction begins on the new Richmond CenterStage, which includes fully renovating and expanding the Carpenter Center for the Performing Arts.
Cultural Crossroad
Many of the regions cultural celebrations take place Downtown; on Brown’s Island , at the 17th Street Farmers Market, in the Greater Richmond Convention Center, in the Coliseum and even in the streets. The National Folk Festival is really the “mother” of all festivals and celebrates many cultures each year, but there are festivals all year long celebrating specific cultures. Here is a sampling: 2nd Street Festival, Asian American Celebration, the Festival of India, Que Pasa, CaribFest, Viva! Italia Richmond’s Original Italian Street Festival, and the list goes on. (for a calendar of events link to RMCVB..visitrichmond site). Downtown is really the regions cultural crossroad.
Going Au Natural
Whether you dream of chasing the rapids or simply chasing the perfect tan, look behind the buildings and you’ll find downtown’s softer, serene side. Because of Richmond’s strategic location along the James River, those lucky enough to work in the hustle and bustle of the city are minutes away from bird-watching hot spots, fishing holes, kayaking adventures, Class 3 whitewater rapids, 20 miles of mountain biking trail, one of the only urban climbing wall sites in the U.S., and more hiking and running paths than you can shake a stick at.
"Richmond’s blessed with tremendous outdoor recreation opportunities, but that’s not how most people think of the city,” comments Jon Lugbill, Executive Director of Sports Backers, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting sporting events in the Richmond area. “We had top athletes here last year for the Nissan XTerra Triathalon and they were saying that it’s the best mountain bike course they’ve ever been on. When you have people who have been around the world and to the Olympics saying that this is the best mountain biking course they’ve ever been on and it starts and stops in downtown Richmond, that’s just incredible.”
Stick some bugspray in your briefcase and get ready for an after work wind-down that beats even the best martini.
Batter Up
Break out your ball caps and beer hats. All year ‘round the city offers action-packed sporting events ranging from motocross competitions to the fourth largest 10K race in the country. With the Richmond RiverDogs hockey team, the Richmond Bandits indoor football league, the Capital One Adventure Games, CapTech Classic bike races, the Ukrops Monument Avenue 10K, the McDonald’s X-Country Festival, VCU and CAA basketball, and the SunTrust Richmond Marathon all conveniently located downtown, the adrenaline rush of the game is just a giant foam finger away.