First Fridays of the Valley began in 2009 as a partnership between Arts Council of the Valley (ACV) and Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance. Envisioned as an expansion of the biannual downtown Art and Gallery Walk, the program - then called First Fridays Downtown - served to gather community members and businesses the first Friday evening of every month in support of Harrisonburg’s art and cultural district.

The program began with 15 retail shops, restaurants, galleries, and museums exhibiting artwork monthly from April through October. Now coordinated by ACV, First Fridays of the Valley is a full-year community event, bringing hundreds of people out to more than 20 participating venues each first Friday.

Interested in getting involved? Contact Arts Council of the Valley at firstfridaysdowntown@gmail.com