Visit 1st Friday Arts Night In Albany

Art galleries throughout downtown Albany offer exhibits and special events for 1st Friday art walk each month.

ALBANY NY – The 1st Friday of every month marks a funky and fun night of the arts in Albany, starting at 5pm. The event is fittingly named... 1st Friday. Residents and visitors flock to downtown Albany for this highly anticipated art event, administered by the Upstate Artists Guild.

1st Friday Event Snapshot

• Downtown Albany art walk • First Friday of every month • Year round event • Night begins at 5pm • 1st FriDAY: 11am – 2pm • Administered by Upstate Artists Guild • Coordinated by Michael Weidrich

“First Friday is for everybody,” said Michael Weidrich, 1st Friday Coordinator. “This event brings together an entire city for one night a month, for the arts.”

Participating downtown art galleries, museums, restaurants, bars, clubs, boutiques and other venues offer open houses, live music, special events, artist receptions, displays and more. The event has recently expanded to include what we call 1st FriDAY -- a chance for Albany’s downtown district to offer mid-day showcases to the lunch crowd from 11am-2pm.

Albany’s galleries offer plenty of art appeal for those who want to purchase pieces or just admire. Weidrich estimates 20-30 participating venues each month. There are also all sorts of special events and after parties going on to keep downtown Albany’s streets bustling with activity all night long. 1st Friday in Albany celebrates its 2-year anniversary in September 2008.

Weidrich credits 1st Friday for inspiring Troy Night Out in downtown Troy, Art Night in Schenectady and First Thursday in Saratoga Springs (now See You On Saturday).

“1st Friday Albany started a new wave of arts events,” said Weidrich. “Troy, Schenectady and Saratoga Springs began their art nights after 1st Friday.”

The Metroland agrees that Albany's arts night spurred other local arts nights in the region. In their Best Of The Capital Region 2007, the Metroland named Arts Nights the “Best Art Trend” and wrote, “It started regionally with Albany’s First Fridays... This idea spread like wildfire throughout the area, and now we have these types of arts nights in Troy, Schenectady, Ballston Spa, Glens Falls, Poughkeepsie, Hudson, and Pittsfield, Mass.”

Kudos to 1st Friday in Albany for not only providing a great monthly art event but also for starting a great local trend!

Learn more about 1st Friday in Albany here