Office of the Arts
Alexandria's Creative Economy
The Arts and Economic Prosperity IV study was conducted by Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America. Established in 1960, Americans for the Arts is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts.
This study - the largest of its kind - shows that arts and culture is a $70.7 million industry in Alexandria supporting 1,774 full-time equivalent jobs, generating $38 million in household income to local residents, and providing $4.8 million in local and state government revenue.
Of the over 1,100 audience members who were surveyed, people who attend a cultural event spend an additional $19.21 above the cost of admission or tickets for items such as dining out souvenirs.
The Arts & Economic Prosperity IV study also shows that during 2010 4,284 volunteers donated 213,351 hours to local non-profit arts and culture organizations. This contribution has an estimated value of over $4,557,000 (the Independent Sector estimates the dollar value of the average 2010 volunteer to be $21.36).
To view the complete study, click here.
To view the national study, click here.
For a quick at-a-glance page, click here.
The City of Alexandria's Office of the Arts served as the lead study partner for Alexandria, one of 182 study partners in the United States. Special thanks to the 62 non-profit arts and culture organizations who provided all of the data for the study and for gathering 1,108 audience surveys and to the Alexandria Commission for the Arts and the Alexandria Arts Forum for their support.
Upcoming workshops:
Strategic Planning – A Compass not an Anchor
Facilitated by: Elizabeth Scott
Wednesday, May 8th
The Basics of Program Evaluation
Facilitated by: Dr. Margo Bailey
Wednesday, September 11th
Strategic Communication
Facilitated by: Dr. Dionne Clemons
Wednesday, November 13th
Follow-up Roundtable:
“Story Stockpiling”
Facilitated by: Mary-Claire Burick
Wednesday, April 10, 9 am
Durant Arts Center, 1605 Cameron Street, Alexandria, VA
RSVPs to the Roundtable discussion: 5for5storystockpilingroundtable.eventbrite.com
About Us
Office of the Arts
The Office of The Arts promotes the value of arts and culture in the City of Alexandria by nurturing, investing in and celebrating the creative contributions of artists and arts organizations. Through engaging the community, encouraging participation, and facilitating access to the arts, the Office strives to build a vibrant community for all of the City's residents, workers and visitors.
Diane Ruggiero, Director
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Alexandria Commission for the Arts
The role of the Arts Commission is to provide leadership in the development of a vibrant and sustainable arts community that engages audiences, and to encourage support and appreciation for the arts as a cornerstone of Alexandria's identity and cultural, social, and economic vitality. To accomplish this mission, the Arts Commission administers City grant funds and arts programs; advises City Council on policy, funding and development needs for the arts; collaborates with partners on initiatives that further the development of, and participation in, the arts; and generally advocates for the arts.
For additional information on the Alexandria Commission for the Arts, click here
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Services
Grants Program | Calls to Artists | Training | Internships | Jobs | Volunteers
Grants Program
Each year, the Alexandria Commission for the Arts advises City Council on the allocation of City funds designated for the arts. Approximately $180,000 in funding is available to assist local artists and arts organizations. The goals of the Commission's grant program are to encourage artistic excellence in the City; assist Alexandria-based arts organizations in improving their financial, administrative, and management capabilities; and provide individual artists with opportunities to create, perform, and present their works.
For additional information, call the Office of the Arts/Durant Arts Center at 703.746.5588.
Grants Workshops
The Alexandria Commission for the Arts conducted two grant program workshops to provide information about the Commission's annual grant program, which provides funding to non-profit arts organizations for various arts programs, and instructions for the on-line application process. All applicants including past grant recipients were encouraged to attend one of the grant workshops. Workshops were held at the Durant Arts Center, 1605 Cameron St., on Monday, October 22nd and Thursday, October 25th.
The City of Alexandria is committed to compliance with the City's Human Rights Code and the Americans with Disabilities Act. To request a reasonable accommodation or to request materials in an alternative format, call Cheryl Anne Colton of the Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities at 703.746.5565 (TTY 703.838.4902) or e-mail cherylanne.colton@alexandriava.gov.
- Encourage artistic excellence in the City of Alexandria;
- Ensure that Commission funded arts programs are accessible to all;
- Assist Alexandria based arts organizations in improving their financial, administrative and management capabilities;
- Provide individual artists with opportunities to create, perform and present their works;
- Support the development of knowledgeable audiences by encouraging projects and programs to make the arts experience more rewarding and significant for its citizens;
- Encourage arts organizations to undertake activities to increase earned income and to develop new sources of revenue to reduce the percentage of City funds as a portion of their income; and
- Provide significant impact on the citizens of Alexandria and on the visibility of the Alexandria arts community.
Types of Grants:
- City Arts Operational Grant
- City Arts Project
- City Arts Technical Assistance Grants
- Special Opportunities Awards
Funded Partners for Fiscal Year 2011 - 2012:
Current Calls to Artists
The Office of the Arts and the Alexandria Commission for the Arts seek applicants for the internship program which provides arts management training for high school, undergraduate and graduate students. Interns assist with advancing the Office of the Arts and Commission's short and long-term organizational goals. Each intern will have the opportunity to develop a plan reflecting specific learning objectives relating to the intern's academic program. A flexible schedule (preferred hours from 8 am - 5 pm Monday-Friday) can be developed. Ten to thirty hours per week for two or three months is requested. Internships are available in the following three areas:
- Public Art Associate: the intern will assist in maintaining a public art inventory for the City of Alexandria; will track and research information for new public art to the City; prepare reports; and will assist with preparing grants for public art;
- Program Associate: the intern will work with volunteers in planning the annual Film Festival and Alex Awards programs, these activities include, but are not limited to, preparing timelines, writing press releases, drafting correspondence, and creating flyers and brochures; and,
- Research Associate: the intern will conduct local, state, regional and national research on arts related issues; this includes web-based research, soliciting information via email and telephone, writing reports and presentations based on the research, and sharing the findings through oral presentations to Committee, Commission or staff members.
For further information, call or write Cheryl Anne Colton, Regional Program Director, Office of the Arts at: Internship Program, Office of the Arts/Alexandria Commission for the Arts, Durant Arts Center, 1605 Cameron St., Alexandria, VA 22314, 703.746.5588 (office), 703.838.6344 (fax), or by email at aca@alexandriava.gov.
Jobs
Volunteer
The Alexandria Commission for the Arts seeks volunteers with expertise in dance, literature, music, theatre, visual arts, arts education, arts administration, business, marketing, and fund raising to serve on its Committees and Resource Panels.
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Events & Programs
Arts Events Calendar | Alex Awards | Film Festival | Festival of the Arts | Poet Laureate
Arts Calendar
The Office of the Arts has partnered with the Alexandria Convention and Visitors Association to bring you a City-wide comprehensive arts calendar. To view, please click on the link below. To add your arts events to the calendar, you must be a member of The Alexandria Arts Forum. For information on becoming a member, please send an e-mail: AlexandriaArtsForum@gmail.com.
Alex Arts Awards
 2009 Alex Arts Awards
Pictured: (L to R) Cheryl Anne Colton, Alisa Carrel,
Marga Fripp (award recipient), Mayor William D. Euille,
Ilona Savage (award recipient) and Pat Miller
Photo by Steven Halperson of Tisara Photography. |
At the April 24 Alexandria City Council meeting, the Honorable Mayor, members of City Council and the Commission for the Arts will present three 2012 Alex Arts Awards. The presentation will be made in the City Council Chambers, City Hall, 301 King Street at 7 pm. The annual Alex Arts Awards, presented by the Alexandria Commission for the Arts, recognize Alexandria citizens or organizations that have made extraordinary contributions to Alexandria's vibrant arts community and cultural life.
The 2012 Alex Arts Award winners are the Ulysses S. James, Music Director, Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic, the Little Theatre of Alexandria and Leah Valtin-Erwin, Senior, TC Williams High School.
Ulysses S. James, Music Director, Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic is known for his innovative musical programming and performance of new, accessible works. He initiated a summer chamber music series at the Lyceum in Alexandria that will celebrate its 20th consecutive year this summer. In 1984, the Washington Metropolitan Youth Orchestra was a small non-auditioned group of string players; it now has 60 auditioned members from across the metropolitan area. Known as "Ul" to many, he volunteers his time and energy in support of the Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic and its associated youth orchestra. Ul also chairs the Alexandria Arts Forum, a coalition of area artists and arts administrators, advocates, and patrons who work together to advance the arts in Alexandria. In this role, he has forged stronger partnerships with the Alexandria Convention and Visitors Association, the Office of the Arts, and the Alexandria Commission for the Arts.
The Little Theatre of Alexandria is the oldest community theatre in the Washington metropolitan area, begun in 1934 as a small play-reading group. Since then, it has staged more than 350 full productions. Productions have garnered many awards, including the Ruby Griffith and WATCH (Washington Area Theatre Community Honors) awards, and received 43 WATCH nominations this past year. In addition to its productions, the theatre's programming includes: two sessions of theatre classes; a children's summer camp; a One-Act Playwriting competition; and PAN (Partners in Art Night), an opportunity for organizations or businesses to partner with the Little Theatre for a specific performance as a fund-raising resource, a membership activity, or expression of appreciation for clients and employees.
Leah Valtin-Erwin, a senior at TC Williams High School, is a life-long resident of Alexandria. She has studied dance locally (with the Choreographers Collaboration Project and The Ballet Studio, both in Del Ray) since 1998. When TC Williams High School was renovated, the school gained a beautiful dance studio—but no dance program. Responding to this unmet need, Leah founded the Modern Dance Society at TC Williams. The company offers free classes after school to all TC Williams students, regardless of prior experience or training. The company focuses on improvisation, partnering, and incorporating other styles into a modern dance curriculum. Through this program, Leah has introduced the entire TC Williams community to the world of modern dance.
Mayor William D. Euille will present the 2012 Alex Arts Awards recipients with a beautiful ceramic window bowl created by Karin Abromaitis. The recipients will also receive a brass star created and donated by David Martin of Gold Works. The Alexandria Commission for the Arts and Office of the Arts are pleased to recognize Ulysses S. James, the Little Theatre of Alexandria and Leah Valtin-Erwin for their contributions to our community and for inspiring others to do the same.
For more information about the Alex Arts Awards or other Arts Commission programs and services call 703.746.5588.
Past Alex Award Recipients
Poet Laureate
The City of Alexandria's Office of the Arts is in search of a Poet Laureate to promote an appreciation of poetry as an art form, encourage the creative writing and reading of literature, and promote literacy through poetry. The individual will serve as Poet Laureate for three years and receive a modest honorarium.
The new Poet Laureate will be named in March of 2013.
Individuals can nominate themselves or be nominated by someone else. Nominees must be distinguished in the field of poetry through a body of work, published or unpublished. Nominees are limited to individuals who live, work or study in the City of Alexandria. Individual must live, work or study in the City of Alexandria for a minimum of 1 year prior to applying and through the 3-year term of service. If selected, individuals must be able to fulfill Poet Laureate ceremonial role, including presentations of work appropriate for all audiences and should be a minimum of 18 years of age. Members of the Alexandria Commission for the Arts and City of Alexandria staff are ineligible for nomination.
Amy Young, the City's current Poet Laureate, is a resident of Alexandria and has read, studied and written poetry since she was a child growing up in Washington, DC. For the last 11 years, she has led the Writer's Lab for 11 and 12 year olds with learning disabilities at the Lab School of Washington. She has also taught writing workshops at night for learning disabled adults. Amy has studied poetry in George Mason University's Master of Fine Arts program and has been trained to lead intensive writing workshops for people from all walks of life.
Ms. Young was appointed to a three year term in April 2010 by the Poet Laureate Selection Panel. Since that time, she has initiated several new programs including the Arlandria Young Poets Club, "Dog Days of August" and Map Alexandria through Poetry and Photography.
Prior Ms. Young's appointment, Mary McElveen was appointed to a three year term in April, 2007. Ms. McElveen was very active in the community, visiting schools, teaching poetry classes, creating and reading poems for City events, and bringing her love of poetry to many other places and events. Her appointment inspired interest in Poet Laureate programs in several other communities, including Fairfax County, VA and Santa Clara County, CA, which just appointed a Poet Laureate. Mary also worked with Office of the Arts to involve businesses, civic associations, libraries, schools, and recreation centers in National Poetry Month and Put a Poem in Your Pocket Day activities.
The City of Alexandria's first and only Poet Laureate of record was Jean Elliott, a 78-year-old Alexandria resident. The Alexandria City Council voted Elliot as Poet in Residence and honored her by placing a plaque on her South Fairfax Street home in 1979. She passed away in 1999.
The Commission and the Office of the Arts, a division of the Department of Recreation, Parks & Cultural Activities, work together to promote and cultivate the arts in the City of Alexandria. For more information, please visit www.alexandriava.gov/arts or call 703.746.5588.
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Public Art
Projects | Art in City Hall | City Galleries Program | Collection
Projects
- Charles Houston Memorial Public Art Project
- Contrabands and Freedmen's Cemetery
- Police Memorial
- The Alexandria Police Foundation is assisting in the effort to raise private funds to construct the Memorial. To contribute to the Alexandria Police Memorial, please send your check in any amount to:
- Alexandria Police Foundation - Police Memorial
c/o Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co.
Attention: C.K. Collum, Jr., Treasurer
P.O. Box 268
Alexandria, VA 22313
Checks should be made payable to the Alexandria Police Foundation
- Concepts:
Art in City Hall
Art in City Hall is a collaborative program of the Alexandria Commission for the Arts, the Office of the Arts, The Art League, Del Ray Artisans and the Torpedo Factory Arts Center.
City Hall, 301 King St.
Monday through Friday, 8 am-5 pm
The following City Hall Exhibitions by appointment only, 703.746.5588.
- Mayor's Office, Room 2331
Marge Holtz, Quilts, through July 2013
City Manager's Office, Room 3500
Tracie Griffth Tso, Mixed Media, through July 2013. - City Council Room, Room 2204
Stephen Schiff, Color Series, through June 28, 2013 - Market Square Lobby
2012 Living Legends of Alexandria, Photographs by Nina Tisara, through March 2013.
2013 Living Legends of Alexandira, Photographs by Nina Tisara, through march 2014. - Department of Transportation and Environmental Services, Fourth Floor
Eric Spiegel, Photographs, through July 2013. - Third Floor Gallery
Outloud Artists, Mixed Media, through July 2013.
City Galleries
Charles E. Beatley, Jr. Central Library, 5005 Duke St.
- Main Gallery:
Art Uniting People, Mixed Media, through July 2013. - Periodical Roomr:
F11, Photographs, through July 2013.
Lee Center, 1108 Jefferson St.
- Upstairs Gallery:
Tracie Wilkerson, Mixed Media, through June 28, 2013. - Director's Area:
Soomin Ham, Paintings, through June 28, 2013.
Durant Arts Center, 1605 Cameron St.
- Main Gallery:
Lillis Werder, Photographs, through September 2013 - Community Arts Room:
David Ghezzi, Mixed Media, through July 2013.
For additional information about the City Galleries program, or if you are a visual artist and want to exhibit your work, call the Office of the Arts at 703.746.5588 or email images (media and sizes) to aca@alexandriava.gov.
Public Art Collection
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Venues
The Alexandria Harmonizers have developed a Catalog of Performing Arts Venues in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area to provide a source of information for performing arts organizations seeking performance space. The Catalog is not meant to be an exhaustive list of all possible venues. Many churches, for example, are used by performing arts groups, but are not included in this edition of the catalog. Thank you to the Alexandria Harmonizers for providing this valuable tool.
These Alexandria sites, many of whom are listed in the Catalog, offer exhibit and/or performance space. The Office of the Arts manages the Durant Community Arts Center which is available for rehearsals, performances, meetings, classes and special events. For more information follow the links below.
Alexandria Black History Museum
Athenaeum
The Birchmere
Bishop Ireton's Whaley Auditorium
Carlyle House
Convergence
Durant Arts Center
Episcopal High School Auditorium - Ainslie Arts Center
Fort Ward Amphitheatre
Gadsby's Tavern
George Washington Memorial Masonic Temple
The Lab at Convergence
Landmark Mall
Lee Center Kauffman Auditorium
Lee-Fendall House
Lloyd Museum
Lyceum
Market Square
Nicholas Colasanto Center (managed by the Del Ray Artisans)
Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center
St. Elmo's Coffee Pub
Torpedo Factory Art Center
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Many houses of worship also offer performance space.
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News & Information
eNews | Press Releases | Policies | Reports & Research | National Arts and Humanities Month
 | Stay informed with eNews!
To receive information about Department programs, special events, community meetings, and more, update your subscription or subscribe to eNews by visiting enews.alexandriava.gov. |
Policies
Policy on Acquired Art
Reports & Research
Alexandria Commission for the Arts' Annual Reports: 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000
Arts & Economic Prosperity Study III
Arts Organization Structure and Community Visioning Plan (Lord Report)
Torpedo Factory Art Center Efficiency and Productivity Study by Management Analysis, Inc.
National Arts and Humanities Month
The Alexandria Commission for the Arts and Office of the Arts join thousands of arts organizations and communities across the nation in celebrating National Arts and Humanities Month throughout October with activities that honor the efforts of artists, historians, teachers, and cultural groups working to make the arts and humanities a part of everyone's life. Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts and national coordinator of Arts and Humanities month, says, "Everyone recognizes the creative and cultural value of the arts and humanities. National Arts and Humanities Month offers us a chance to celebrate the often overlooked economic, educational, and civic engagement values that the arts impart in our daily lives."
Please join us in the country's largest annual collective celebration of the arts and humanities.
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Donate
Arts Commission Donation Account
Contributions may be unrestricted or designated to support a specific program such as: Annual Grants Program, Charles Houston Public Art Project, Police Memorial, Alex Awards, Alexandria Film Festival, Art Chats, Poet Laureate Program, Arts in City Hall and City Galleries Program. Your gift in any amount is appreciated. Donations may be mailed to Office of the Arts, 1108 Jefferson St., Alexandria, VA 22314.
We thank our current donors for their generous support.
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Links
Alexandria Arts Forum
Americans for the Arts
Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington
National Arts Strategies
National Assembly of State Arts Agencies
National Endowment for the Arts
Virginia Alliance of Local Arts Agencies
Virginia Commission for the Arts
Virginians for the Arts
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Contact Us
| | Diane Ruggiero
Deputy Director,
Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activites
Office of the Arts
Durant Arts Center
1605 Cameron St.
Alexandria, VA 22314
703.746.5590
diane.ruggiero@alexandriava.gov | Donna Fowler, Chair
Alexandria Commission for the Arts
1108 Jefferson St.
Alexandria, VA 22314
703.746.5588
aca@alexandriava.gov
|
Activities are partially funded by the generous support of:
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