CultureWorks is thrilled to announce the eighth annual artoberVA – a month-long celebration of arts and culture in the Richmond and Tri-Cities region throughout October!
Since 2016, artoberVA has prioritized increased access to free arts and culture experiences through collaborations with individual artists and community-based organizations. Every October, in conjunction with National Arts and Humanities month, CultureWorks presents artoberVA to promote events, pop-ups, exhibits, performances, collaborations, and any arts or cultural experience happening in the Richmond and Tri-Cities region. In 2022, artoberVA had 434 unique events, 1,250 total experiences and 100 participating artists and organizations. Visit the Arts & Culture Calendar and see all that our region has to offer! Also, it is not too late for artists, organizations, and businesses to get involved. To learn more, visit www.artoberva.com.
artoberVA strives to uphold the belief that strong communities are built through the power of shared arts and culture experiences across disciplines; deepening connections, transcending barriers, and changing the trajectory of lives. During artoberVA’ s eighth year, CultureWorks aims to continue elevating a variety of diverse arts and culture offerings, by and for everyone, with an intentional focus on cultural equity. artoberVA 2023 will connect and uplift our region’s impactful arts and culture community, highlight events from every genre, and spotlight the voices of diverse artists and organizations.
“Loved seeing all the amazing opportunities for arts connectivity located right in our own back yard. Thank you for all that you do to bring artoberVA to life.” – artoberVA2022 attendee
artoberVA is made possible in part due to the support of our generous partners: The E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation, Altria, Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Virginia Commission for the Arts, McGuireWoods LLP, Troutman Pepper, Quinn Evans Architects, and EY, with additional sponsorship opportunities still available.
New in 2023!
CultureWorks is partnering with several organizations as it introduces weekly spotlight artoberVA events. CultureWorks is excited to be a partnering organization helping to bring these experiences to artoberVA this year. Their cultural equity work revolves around making arts and culture accessible to all, especially those in underserved areas, and they have strategically chosen diverse partners and locations for these events. They believe that collaboration across artists and organizations strengthens individual and organizational capacity and makes a more compelling event for the public. CultureWorks values its ability to have a regional impact on collaboration and partnerships.
The Schedule is as follows:
Week 1 – Kickoff Concert with Weldon Hill at The Valentine Museum, October 3rd and artoberFest at Petersburg’s Appomattox Iron Works, October 7th. More info and tickets.
Week 2 – Second Fridays Takeover with VISARTS at the Visual Arts Center, October 13th.
Week 3 – An Evening of Storytelling with Virginia Storytelling Alliance at SPARC, October 20th. More info and tickets.
Week 3 – Unhappy Hour Fundraiser with Poe Museum.
Week 4 – TBD
CultureWorks will continue to promote on social media and their other digital channels the thousands of expected artoberVA experiences and events presented by the 100+ presenting arts and culture organizations and artists across our region during the month of October. Arts and culture organizations can continue to submit artoberVA events to their arts and culture calendar for highlights and promotion throughout the month. Organizations, artists, and media outlets can download artoberVA logos, graphics, social media shares and more in the artoberVA toolkit.
“In 2022 we began to see a return to pre-pandemic levels of arts and culture opportunities in our region,” said CultureWorks President Scott Garka. “For 2023, artoberVA will be a tremendous opportunity for residents and visitors to our region to reconnect with each other and with the cultural elements they love that make our region such a vibrant community. With so many events happening around the region, I also encourage you to try something new to you. You just might find something you’ll love for a lifetime.”
About CultureWorks
CultureWorks is an independently funded 501(c)(3) organization that values diversity and inclusivity and believes everyone in our community should have access to arts and culture, as well as the opportunity to express their culture through the arts.
CultureWorks is committed to strengthening artists and arts and culture organizations to drive community health and success. We will accomplish this through grant opportunities, deepening access to communities with barriers, increasing the capacity of small and medium-sized organizations and individual artists, and the promotion of events to the public.
Learn more about CultureWorks: www.richmondcultureworks.org.
