Art Fest 2026: what's happening this year?

Art Fest is a public art organisation with a mission to put art into everyday spaces. In 2024 and 2025, it hosted a free one-day visual art festival across Nottingham city centre, featuring exhibitions, live painting, workshops and murals. This year it also ran a food and art festival with New Art Exchange in Hyson Green. 

At the heart of the organisation is a commitment to championing artists, creating paid opportunities, and helping establish Nottingham as a city of artists.

This year, however, Art Fest has chosen to do things differently. Moving away from the scale of the previous two festivals has created space to reflect on what it has achieved and consider what comes next. Creative Director Benjamin Kay describes the switch-up as “the best decision we could have made. We’re still painting large-scale works across the city, but we’re opening ourselves up to year-round commissions rather than cramming everything into an incredible – and incredibly intense – festival.”

“This year is a chance to reflect on the work we’ve done so far,” says Ben. “There are so many incredible murals across the city centre, created through Art Fest and by other artists independently. We want to document them, celebrate the artists behind them and tell the stories of why they were painted. Our tours, new mural maps and artist plaques are all about making sure those artists and their work are properly recognised.”

Part of the inspiration came from Ben spending six weeks in America on a research trip, part-funded by Nottingham’s Roosevelt Scholarship. Travelling across the east and west coasts, he met visual artists, visited art and print studios and spent time with organisations running street art festivals.

Philadelphia prompted questions about how cities build long-term ecosystems that support artists. Volunteering at a street art festival in Fort Lauderdale highlighted the importance of involving young people, while San Francisco demonstrated how an established mural culture can tell the stories of local communities.

Rather than concentrating activity into a single festival, Art Fest’s events will take place throughout the year, beginning in September with artist-led street art tours. Smallkid and Boaster will lead a cycling tour; Montana paint shop owner Dilk will explore Nottingham’s graffiti and street art history; Emily Catherine will focus on the city’s political murals; and Benjamin will guide visitors through murals commissioned by Art Fest.

In November, a two-day event will bring together workshops, talks and new exhibitions including a showcase of Benjamin’s photography from America, documenting each city’s different “flavour of art.”

“Nottingham definitely has a really friendly flavour. It’s a really playful city and there’s a lot of freedom in the work people make. My main ambition is to make sure that people in and outside of Nottingham know us as a city of artists, because that is what I think we are,” says Ben. 

Art Fest is also launching the Art Fest Collective – connecting artists with opportunities while continuing to commission new public art across Nottingham and beyond.

Ben believes that after this year of getting “off the hamster wheel”, to learn, evaluate and strategise, Art Fest will return with a bigger bang. Until then, keep your eyes peeled for new murals popping up in and around the city; look out for tour tickets, and get to know the artists behind our streets’ brightest corners.

Art Fest returns Sat 21 - Sun 22 November, with some events starting this month. Head to their Instagram to see what’s coming up.

@artfestnottingham