MAIN ST. - Fort Worth Arts Festival 2027

Historical figures are available for the festival's founding. That first MAIN ST. Fort Worth Arts Festival was a three-day event involving 140 artists, 60 performance groups and 600 volunteers, with attendance of approximately 80,000. The festival has grown substantially since then. Downtown Fort Worth has grown to more than 10,000 residents with a burgeoning entertainment scene, and the MAIN ST. Fort Worth Arts Festival has evolved into the biggest and best-attended event of its kind in the Southwest, ranked #3 nationally by Art Fair SourceBook. Current-year total attendance figures are not published on the official site.

General admission to the festival is free for attendees — no ticket or pass is required to walk the festival and view the art.

Participants apply in advance through dedicated channels:

• Artists apply through the ZAPPlication platform; the official site also publishes Artist Key Dates, an Artist Prospectus, and Visual Arts Policies.
• Entertainers apply via the festival's band application.
• Food & drink vendors apply through the vendor application.
• Volunteer and sponsorship opportunities are also available through the festival website.

Prospective exhibitors should consult the artist key dates page for current application deadlines.

The event traces its beginnings to the early 1980s when the City of Fort Worth set in motion a campaign of urban revitalization in the Central Business District. As momentum built, businessman Robert Bass spearheaded the initial effort in 1986 to create an event showcasing the attractions of the city's reawakening downtown core.

Bass and other civic leaders envisioned a multi-faceted festival that would transform downtown into an outdoor gallery and concert stage on an early spring weekend. That first festival was a three-day event involving 140 artists, 60 performance groups and 600 volunteers, with attendance of approximately 80,000.

2026 marks the 39th active year that the MAIN ST. Fort Worth Arts Festival has brought arts and entertainment to the streets of downtown Fort Worth. The festival is produced by Downtown Fort Worth Initiatives, Inc. (DFWII), which also manages Burnett Park and produces the GM Financial Parade of Lights. It is presented by PNC Bank.