About

WHO WE ARE

Founded in 2022, Riverworks is the newest art center in the D.C. area, and arguably the most ambitious. We’re excited to make our small Maryland town a hub for art classes, performances, exhibitions, and cultural programs—and we’re inviting you to join us.

Riverworks currently hosts events at three venues in and around Poolesville:

With its elegant sculpture garden, Alden Farms (19215 Beallsville Road, Beallsville, Md.), provides a quiet space for art classes, writing workshops, and studio space.

At Locals Farm Market (19929 Fisher Ave., Poolesville, Md.) you’ll find rotating art exhibitions, Friday night jam sessions, and a marketplace for the work of local artists.

Our outdoor stage at the historic Methodist church (17617 West Willard Road, Poolesville, Md.) brings dance, music, and other performances to the heart of our small town, with bigger plans to come.

As we expand our offerings, we’re also creating a permanent home. We’re raising funds to turn the historic 1820s church on West Willard Road into a state-of-the-art performing arts center and gallery space. Our vision is art and culture for all—while transforming small-town Poolesville into an arts destination for visitors from the D.C. region and beyond.

Click here to learn more about our classes and events, and click here to donate to help us build our performing arts center.

WHERE WE ARE

Riverworks is rooted in the small town of Poolesville, Maryland, by a bend in the Potomac within the 93,000-acre Montgomery County Agricultural Reserve, a haven of farms and forests, rolling hills, historic communities, and vast natural beauty. We’re only 45 minutes outside the D.C. Beltway and just half an hour south of Frederick, with Sugarloaf Mountain rising eight miles to our north.

Unlike our urban or suburban counterparts, Riverworks is unique among art centers in the D.C. region for its restorative rural setting. Our classes and programs seek to combine art and creativity with our beautiful natural surroundings, offering the promise of inspiration, exploration, and peace.

Those of us who live and work here believe that western, upper Montgomery County is the best-kept secret in the D.C. region. Explore our rustic roads and you’ll discover hiking trails, riverside views, farm-fresh produce, independent restaurants, African American historic sites, Civil War trails, local beer and wine served right at the source—and now, a burgeoning arts community.