Billing itself as the nation’s premier fall outdoor art festival in the U.S., the Bayou City Art Festival invites artists from around the world to apply for the opportunity to showcase and sell their art at this year’s Fall event, to be held October 10-12, 2025, in Houston’s Memorial Park.
2023 Bayou City Art Festival
The deadline for applications is Monday, June 16 at midnight CST, with an application fee of $50. Five images are required for submission, including four artwork images and a booth shot from a prior festival. Artists may apply in 19 fine art/fine crafts categories, including clay, fiber, glass, jewelry, watercolors, and wood.
Artists who have participated in two or fewer juried art festivals are encouraged to apply to the festival’s Emerge: Artists on the Rise program, and may submit a fifth image of their work in lieu of a booth image. Selected artists will receive a booth in a dedicated area alongside other exhibiting artists.
A panel of five to seven artists, collectors, educators, curators, and industry professionals will select 300 artists from more than 1,000 applicants, according to a news release. Cash prizes will be awarded for Best in Show, and second and third place, as selected by on-site festival judges. Ribbons are also awarded for Best Booth, as well as the Museum of Fine Arts Curatorial award, which is determined by judges from the Museum of Fine Arts Houston (MFAH). All winners receive jury exempt status for two years as well as priority booth placement.
The Art Colony Association, Inc. produces the biannual Bayou City Art Festival, held in the Spring and Fall, to benefit Houston area nonprofits including ARTreach, Pink Bows Foundation, The Women’s Fund, The Health Museum and the MFAH. Through more than 50 years of festivals beginning as the Westheimer Colony Art Festival, the Art Colony Association has raised more than $3.7 million for nonprofits while offering a venue to more than 20,000 artists.
Visit the Bayou City Art Festival website for more information. To submit an artist application, click here. All artists selected to participate will be notified by July 7, 2025.
