The Utah Arts Festival is celebrating 50 years in 2026!
It started back in 1977 when a group that included then-mayor Ted Wilson, discussed how to make art more accessible in the community.
As part of the conversation, someone said "If art is that intimidating, we out to throw it in the street".
That quickly took shape in the form of the first festival on Main Street with visual arts, performing arts, children's art yard, and food booths.
Performers in the first festival included the Utah Symphony, Repertory Dance Theatre, members of The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and other local jazz and music groups who all performed for free.
This year will be a celebration for all!
Some of the highlights include vertical dance pioneers, BANDALOOP, who will be performing for the fourth time on the Main Library's striking 240-foot-high curving glass facade.
There will also be nightly music headliners starting Thursday, June 18, 2026 with jazz hip hop Digable Planets, Friday with soulful Grammy-nominee Yola, Saturday with Americana darling Shakey Graves, and finishing off Sunday with indie disco Rubblebucket.
Also back by popular demand, demonstrating artists are back showing how their process works alongside more than 170 visual artists in the Artist Marketplace.
Ashley Hawk was at Utah Arts Festival with West Valley demonstrating artist Ethan Storrer. He is dedicated to using art to make paleontology and the natural world more accessible.
Using fine-detail fossil preparation, sculpture, painting, wood/metal working. molding and casting, Ethan presents real fossil specimens and replicas to bring the deep past to life.
From T. Rex to Mammoths, Ethan has hundreds of millions of years of evolution condensed in his collection.
Seven graffiti mural artists will also be painting on site.
Utah Arts Fest goes through Sunday, June 21, 2026 and you can find more information at uaf.org.
