NASHVILLE, TN — Artville, Nashville’s only citywide public visual arts festival, returns for its fourth year September 25–27, 2026 at Walk of Fame Park in downtown Nashville, featuring new large-scale murals and public art installations alongside the American Artisan Festival, live music, food, family activities, and more — all free to the public.
For 2026, Artville is providing public art grants to five public artists to create new site-specific works and installations for Walk of Fame Park, and is today launching a call for muralists to apply to receive a grant to paint a new mural at Walk of Fame Park, in collaboration with the Nashville Downtown Partnership. The partnership deepens Artville’s mission of making visual art visible and accessible across the city, turning downtown’s central gathering space into a canvas for residents and visitors alike.
This year’s public artists selected bring five distinct voices and concepts to the program. Milagros, the New Orleans and Miami based collective co-founded by Felici Asteinza and Joey Fillastre, creates exuberant, immersive site-specific installations. Gerard Nadeau, an architect and educator from Toledo, builds temporary, participatory structures that treat space as a catalyst for civic change. Nashville’s KEVPOP stages large-scale, playful public installations and viral art experiments. And Singapore-based Stephany Zoo works in ephemeral, natural materials to explore nature and community. What unites them all is a shared commitment to working in public spaces, as each is an established public artist whose work has appeared in museums, festivals, and civic exhibitions across the world.
Artville, in collaboration with the Nashville Downtown Partnership, will help facilitate the selection and creation of a new mural concept to help reimagine the parking structures and park fixtures at Walk of Fame Park—one of Nashville's most visited and photographed public spaces. The project will aim to help create an iconic public art mural that celebrates Nashville's creative spirit, while honoring the legacy of the Music City Walk of Fame. The muralist application is online through August 12th and interested artists can apply online today or learn more at artville.org. The mural artists selected will paint and install the work leading up to the Artville weekend September 25-27, 2026.
“Artville began with a simple belief that world-class visual art belongs in Nashville, and should expand each year during the annual city-wide event, and be free and available for everyone to enjoy,” said Samantha Saturn, Artville Co-Founder. “Returning to Walk of Fame Park for our fourth year and working alongside the Nashville Downtown Partnership to bring new murals and public art to the heart of the city, is exactly the kind of program Nashville needs more of. We can’t wait to engage with the community to share these experiences both with locals and tourists alike this fall.”
Returning to Walk of Fame Park, the festival once again brings together the American Artisan Festival, a Nashville tradition since 1972, with dozens of contemporary handcraft and fine artisans selling work across a range of mediums — from fine jewelry, ceramics, and glass to photography, printmaking, leather goods, custom hats, and more. Artisans from all across the US will be attending this year, a list of exhibitors can be found here.
This year’s Artville weekend will kick off with Artville Afterdark presented by Eastpoint taking place at Wasioto/Cumberland Park on Thursday, September 24th from 6 - 9 pm. Artville Afterdark will feature a nighttime celebration of light, sound and movement. Expect DJ sets, light sculptures, immersive art projects and projection mapping installation, and the event will be free to the public.
Artville 2026 is supported by Nashville Downtown Partnership, Visit Music City, Eastpoint, Bearded Iris Brewing, State Farm, 6th Man Movers and the Nashville Scene.
ABOUT ARTVILLE
Artville is Nashville’s first and only annual public arts festival dedicated to highlighting Nashville’s creative culture through site-specific art installations, immersive experiences, and art collecting opportunities — all free to the public. With a vision of building a nationally recognized citywide art festival, Artville aims to drive arts-related tourism and support Nashville’s growing community of visual artists, galleries, art museums, and cultural institutions through an annual event. Co-founded by Samantha Saturn and Jack Davis and supported in part by The Nashville Convention & Visitors Corporation, Artville has become a major annual event that celebrates and amplifies Nashville’s vibrant artistic community.
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