
First Friday: Art Walk
The Dupont Circle ArtWalk takes place on the First Friday of each month from 6:00-8:00 p.m., and features Dupont Circle art galleries, embassies, and cultural centers. The monthly event is a self-guided gallery walk where you can start at any open location. Visit one or try to see them all! Free!
The Church of Scientology National Affairs Office is hosting a special exhibition presented by United for Human Rights, Youth for Human Rights DC Chapter, and Art Impact® International to celebrate human rights! The show features ten artists with a variety of styles who will be present to discuss their art with you. Come and enjoy the artwork and meet the artists who stand for human rights: Mona Dworkin • Contemporary Fine Artist, Ta lze • Abstract and Impression Style Painter, Duwenavue Sante Johnson • Contemporary Painter and Hand Embroidery Artist, Cynthia Chinyere Okorafor • Interdisciplinary Artist, Patrick Smith • Modern Portraitist, Jorge Fernando Sodero • Abstract Fine Artist & Poet, and J. Thomas Wells • Assemblage Fine Artist. The Church of Scientology National Affairs Office is located at 1701 20th St. NW.
Dupont Underground presents ALT-DC Videos + Stills. Set within the raw, industrial environment of Dupont Underground, ALT-DC transforms the physical space into a platform for expanded storytelling. The site itself — once a transit hub, now an experimental cultural venue — becomes part of the narrative, echoing themes of transformation, reclamation, and hidden histories.
ALT-DC positions DC as a place in motion, where art becomes a tool for revealing what is, imagining what could be, and advocating for what should be. Dupont Underground is located at 19 Dupont Circle, NW.
Stop in and view the carriage house of the Heurich House Museum this First Friday! The museum’s biergarten, 1921, will be open, so guests can enjoy a rotating list of fresh local craft beer from DC breweries and beer brands, craft cocktails and wine from the area’s best beverage producers, and Senate Beer, the museum’s historic revival with Right Proper Brewing Company. The Heurich House is located at 1307 New Hampshire Ave, NW.
IA&A at Hillyer invites the public to see three new exhibitions: Écriture (Writing) with the Body: Contemporary Korean Women’s Art, curated by Trio & Beats (Dr. Jung-Sil Lee and Dr. Koh Dong-Yeon), Traces ( آثار ), curated by Laila Abdul-Hadi Jadallah, and Landed, by solo artist Elizabeth Coffey. Take this opportunity to meet the artists and curators in person and mingle with friends and colleagues. Free to the public (suggested donation $10). Location: 9 Hillyer Ct, NW.
IA&A at Hillyer invites the public to see three new exhibitions: Écriture (Writing) with the Body: Contemporary Korean Women’s Art, curated by Trio & Beats (Dr. Jung-Sil Lee and Dr. Koh Dong-Yeon), Traces ( آثار ), curated by Laila Abdul-Hadi Jadallah, and Landed, by solo artist Elizabeth Coffey. Take this opportunity to meet the artists and curators in person and mingle with friends and colleagues. Free to the public (suggested donation $10). Location: 9 Hillyer Ct, NW.
The Middle East Institute presents Arab Pop Art: Between East and West, which explores the evolution of a dynamic Arb pop art movement that merges Arab cultural symbols with the bold visual language of Western Pop Art. Drawing on satire, street culture, and a sharp socio-political lens, Arab pop artists reframe regional narratives while subverting stereotypes. The works on view juxtapose everyday icons and traditional motifs with imagery echoing the likes of Warhol and Lichtenstein, resulting in a powerful visual dialogue that redefines identity, challenges conventions, and offers fresh perspectives on contemporary life in the Middle East. The MEI Art Gallery is located at 1763 N St. NW.
The Museum of the Palestinian People is honored to showcase the people, places, and special moments in Gaza captured through a collection of photographs stretching over four decades. This collection is part of the museum’s Gaza Remains the Story exhibit curated in cooperation with the Palestinian Museum in BirZeit, West Bank. The exhibit, which highlights Gazan family photos from the archives, along with 33 art pieces from Gazan artists, and a history presented through the research and infographics of Visualizing Palestine, all of which introduces, informs, educates, and bears witness to Gaza’s reality, while offering a glimpse into the art, aspirations, and enduring spirit of its people. For this First Friday, the Museum is also offering a guided tour at 6:30 PM. The Museum of the Palestinian People is located at 1900 18th St. NW.
Q Street Fine Art and Barbara Bennett are pleased to feature the paintings of Rafael Gallardo including some of the archived pieces not shown in a while and to introduce the paintings of Cuban artist Reina Maria Valdes and sculpture artist William Perry. There will be a reception and art talk in the Carriage House gallery nestled behind Saint Matthew's Cathedral at 1 Saint Matthew's Court NW. Call 202 255 2893 for directions.
Studio Gallery is hosting multiple exhibitions in different sections of their gallery. In the upper gallery, they host My Cup Runneth Over by Christopher Corson, which encompasses 15 years of artwork. In the lower gallery, they present Without Words by Freda Lee-McCann, inspired by a 15th-century poem on plum blossoms. In their Garden Gallery, Studio Gallery is showcasing S*** Happens by Langley Spurlock with John Martin Tarrat, Woodblocks Revisited by Carolee James, and finally Not Quite Out Of The Woods by Wayne Paige. Visit Studio Gallery at 2108 R St. NW.
The Washington Center of ADA University, ADA Art Gallery presents Light Works by Mira Hecht. Mira Hecht’s paintings explore life’s transience, fragility and profound interconnection. Built through the slow layering of transparent veils of oil paint, her luminous abstractions reveal radiant color, depth, and a kaleidoscopic interplay of light. Light, both material and symbolic, is central to her work - illuminating form while embodying awareness, hope, and healing. Her work calls us to awaken to our shared vulnerability and to live with respect, compassion and unity. The ADA Art Gallery is located at 1627 21st Street, NW on the corner of 21st & R Street NW.
How to Attend
First Friday: Art Walk is a free art walk open to the public. Visitors can start at any participating location listed on the map from 6:00-8:00 pm on the First Friday of each month. The gallery walk will take place in the above art galleries, museums, embassies, and cultural centers situated throughout the greater Dupont Circle neighborhood.