Richmond’s 1708 Gallery has made a number of impacts around the city, and that hard work is paying off in real ways.



Richmond’s 1708 Gallery has made a number of impacts around the city, and that hard work is paying off in real ways.

The non-profit space for new art is getting a $35K grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, one of over 1,000 recipients receiving a total of $74.3 million.

The money will go straight to the annual Inlight Richmond program which lights up RVA’s fall sky with unique art installations and a lantern parade which draws hundreds of local families and residents in on the fun.

“The partnership with the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is a really compelling argument for funding,” said Emily Smith, Executive Director at 1708 Gallery, as to why she thinks the annual Inlight program succeed in getting the grant this year. This is the first time the two groups have worked together in the seven year history of the program, and the second time Inlight has received an NEA grant.

“A lot of hard work and time has gone into it to make it a strong and successful program… the community spirit speaks to how popular it is,” said Smith. “I think [the NEA] is interested in programs that use art to engage people in more unconventional ways.”

And anyone who’s spent some time at an Inlight event knows the art is unconventional to say the least.

The 2015 Inlight program is still taking proposals, you can read more about what they are looking for here.