Newsfeed
From our blog and art opportunities, to press on the district and our monthly newsletter — get caught up on all things NEON.
February 2025
The Perry Glass Studio is finally fired up and ready to be shared with the wide world. Pre-NEON District, the Studio first opened in 2011 as an experiment to add glassmaking and complement the Chrysler Museum of Art’s significant permanent glass collection. As the Studio’s scope expanded over the years, bringing in hundreds of working artists through apprenticeships and workshops, the NEON District grew up alongside it. The creative energy brought in by new multidisciplinary artists fed the early years of the NEON as those artists spread into the neighborhood making neon public art pieces, took up residence at Glass Wheel Studio, volunteered their time to beautify public spaces and gave birth to the NEON Festival. There is no NEON District without the Perry Glass Studio. And now it’s time to celebrate!
View PostJanuary 2025
Currently on view at Tidewater Community College’s Visual Arts & Design Center in Downtown Norfolk, Renewable Energies is the first exhibition to be co-produced by TCC and NEON.
View PostDecember 2024
In this quiet time between holidays, we are reflecting back on a year of rebuilding and reimagining the NEON District. Although some friends and businesses moved on, transformation is still there, always incrementally building up. More than a decade after the formation of the District, we can see the payoff from years of community building and dedication to the arts. Here’s what we accomplished together this year.
View PostNovember 2024
Each year, the NEON District collaborates with local artists to create custom holiday décor for display at the Plot. This year, a student team from The Governor’s School for the Arts baked up a batch of gingerbread people to show the rich diversity of our community. The young artists wanted to celebrate the festive season with a variety of cookie-shaped figures in fun fashions.
View PostOctober 2024
Word on the streets is that the 9th Annual NEON Festival might have been the best one yet. By inviting in local curators and event producers to own their own piece of the festival, there was truly a new energy pulsing through the neighborhood. From new spaces at Chrysler Museum Glass Studio to city streets full of festival-goers, you could see the smiling faces and know everyone was feeling the glow.
View PostSeptember 2024
In only a few short weeks, the NEON Festival descends into the District with two blockbuster nights of programming. On Thursday, October 17 and Friday, October 19 from 6-10pm, hundreds of performers and artists will show off the best of Hampton Roads’ creative spirit. But before that, a few art projects will come to fruition.
View PostAugust 2024
The NEON District is seeking an artist or artist team to complete a dynamic, large-scale mural before this year’s NEON Festival, on October 17 and 18, 2024.
View PostJuly 2024
This year, we are putting the NEON Festival in your good hands. The 757 is beyond rich with talented event producers, art curators and experience creators. For the first time, we are inviting producers to design and implement your own programming under the NEON Festival umbrella. We will provide the venue, a production grant and festival support, if you can bring the energy.
View PostJune 2024
Explore the latest in Norfolk’s NEON District with new artworks in neighborhood signs, a free collage class at d’Art Center, and the summer fitness series “Run Your Best Mile,” plus save the date for the NEON Festival returning October 17-18.
View Post9th Annual NEON Festival
The 9th annual NEON Festival returned to NFK October 18 & 19, 2024. The nights were lit with performances, music, murals, art and more! Stay tuned for 2025's tenth anniversary celebration!
Learn MoreCall For Artists
Hundreds of artists have passed through NEON walls over the years. Big or small, international or your next door neighbor, high school student or college professor - artists of all kinds and skill levels are welcome to contribute to the NEON District's public art collection. Apply for project-based open calls throughout the year to join the club.
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