My 4 year old and I recently had a Mommy/Daughter date that just so happened to be downtown during First Friday. I hadn’t been to First Friday in years, so we took advantage of the art galleries being open in the evening and did a little art walk of our own. Artspace Raleigh was the highlight of our trip! It’s an art gallery with lots of little different studios, and the artists were actually there doing live demonstrations! I love that my little artist was able to see the process of a blank canvas becoming a work of art right before her very eyes!
Artspace Raleigh is setup almost like a school building. There are long hallways with rooms on each side, and each room is a different artist’s studio gallery. You can view lots of works from a specific artist all in one place and see how their style carries over into each piece.
Each artist also uses different art mediums. We saw everything from various forms of painting, drawing, photography, jewelry, and even neon light art! It was fun to walk through the space and enter someone else’s world in each different room.
Classes and Events
During the week, Artspace hosts a variety of classes, and they currently have “art at home” kits you can pick up for some creativity while at home. The kits look like some of them could work for younger kids, but most of their classes are geared for older students. Summer camp starts at 3rd grade, so you may want to check it out if you have a kid that age! For my preschoolers, we’ll just stick to visiting during open hours!
a variety of different art forms 
a number of galleries available in separate rooms within Artspace 
art with neon lights 
we loved watching this artist paint
Plan your Visit
Artspace is FREE and open to the public. They operate on donations, and the suggested donation per visit is $5.
Current public hours are Fridays and Saturdays from 11am to 5pm, with extended evening hours on First Friday. You do not need an appointment to visit during these days/times. If you would like to visit during the week, you can book an appointment Tuesday through Thursday between 11am and 3pm. You can complete this form to schedule your appointment.
Keep in mind that not all artists will be there during your appointment. Artspace will alert the artists that there is an appointment, but not all artists will be available during that time. If there’s a specific artist you would like to meet, you can make appointments with them directly to visit their studios independently. Here is a list of the current artists, and you can contact the artist directly to schedule a single studio visit.
What about NCMA?
You may be wondering, why should I visit Artspace instead of the NC Museum of Art? They both display visually appealing art, but visiting Artspace is completely different than NCMA! The art at Artspace is more contemporary and is organized by artist instead of by time period. Instead of looking back on history at NCMA, here you are seeing today’s art being made right in front of you! I feel like it helps kids connect to art in their world, instead of thinking about it historically. Both are great experiences, so I highly recommend going to both places!