New City Arts Initiative

Community: new city arts works together with community members and partner organizations to spark connection and bolster people-centered, creative solutions to economic and social challenges. We maintain a flexible, responsive approach to programming and community engagement. 100% of community arts programs, events, and open calls are free or low-cost.new city arts celebrated its 11th year of charlottesville soup, a community-decided and community-building grant-making process that funds artists directly through a community meal. This 100-person, low-cost dinner provides residents with the power to fund local artists' projects by pooling donations and ticket sales to create a grant awarded to an artist by vote. In february, new city arts crossed the $50,000 threshold in project funding awarded to individual artists since charlottesville soup's founding in 2013.

Education: by hosting educational opportunities - such as artist talks, workshops, and interviews where local artists share about their practice, experience, and craft - we foster opportunities for community building and artistic professional development. From july 1, 2024-june 30, 2025, new city arts hosted 59 events like skillsharing workshops, craft nights, artist talks, artwork exchanges, artist dinners, co-working days, gallery lunches, mending circles, and more.