James River Art League

About JRAL

James River Art League (JRAL) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization of more than 120 juried member artists from throughout Central Virginia. Our goal is to encourage the creation and appreciation of the visual arts. We provide our member artists with motivation, association, and continuing education through programs that feature qualified artists and art professionals, and we provide opportunities for members to exhibit artwork in venues throughout the Richmond area.

JRAL artists work in a wide range of art media, including oil, acrylic, watercolor, pastel, graphite, pen & ink, collage, silk screen, scratchboard, photography, sculpture, and more. Please visit our Art Gallery to see a sampling of members' paintings

History of JRAL

James River Art League is one of the oldest art groups in Richmond and was organized in 1964 by members of a painting class taught by Helen Hull Bailey. Through her persuasion, an art league was formed south of the James River; early meetings were held in a small white house on the grounds of Westover Hills School.  The membership grew and soon the League included artists from both sides of the James River.  Today, JRAL remains anchored in Greater Richmond, although we have members from throughout Central Virginia.

In 2014, we celebrated our 50th anniversary with a year long celebration.  Visit our Anniversary News page for more information about our celebratory activities.  We also published a commemorative book, James River Art League: 50 Years of Art, that chronicles JRAL's history for our first fifty years; click here to read our book.

Meetings & Programs

We welcome guests to join us at our Program/Business meetings at St. Matthews Episcopal Church located in Henrico County in September, November, January, March, and May.  Field trips and special programs for members occur in October, December, February and April.  Please visit our Meetings/Programs page for full details.

Become a Member

We jury in members in November and March.

Website: https://www.jamesriverartleague.com/