Downtown Minneapolis Street Art Festival Returns August 13-14

The festival will feature its largest lineup of artists, musicians, makers and family-friendly creative activities

The Mpls Downtown Improvement District (DID) and the Hennepin Theatre Trust (HTT) announced today the 4th annual Downtown Mpls Street Art Festival, which will take place Saturday and Sunday, August 13-14 on Nicollet and Hennepin in downtown Minneapolis.

The festival will feature its largest lineup of chalk artists and spray painting works by world-renowned artists, a Saturday evening concert by Bad Bad Hats on Nicollet, food trucks, a community mandala, interactive activities, including custom sign design, community carving and metal pouring, and screen printing, a makers market and much more.

“We wanted to make sure this year’s festival celebrated artists of all kinds for their contribution, perseverance and work in community over the past two years,” said Lisa Middag, Director of Nicollet Activation for the Mpls DID. “This year, we have more artists than ever before, further proving the resiliency of the arts community. I’m really looking forward to lining Nicollet with works from local and national renowned artists, and I’m especially excited for the downtown community to experience more street art than ever before.”

This year’s schedule includes:

Saturday, August 13

• Nicollet Chalk Art Festival | 10 am – 6 pm 
• 3D Chalk Art Installation at IDS | 10 am – 6 pm 
• Live Spray Painting on Nicollet | 10 am – 6 pm
• Street Eats (food trucks and more) on Nicollet | 10 am – 6 pm
• Nicollet Makers Market Festival Edition | 10 am – 6 pm
• Pedal to the Metal | 10 am – 6 pm
• Heart and Soul Drum and Dance Academy | 11  am & 1 pm
• La Luchadora | 11 am – 5 pm
• Mobile Sign Shop | 11:30 am – 3:30 pm
• Street Show performances | 12 & 2 pm
• Downtown Mpls Street Art Festival concert featuring headliner Bad Bad Hats with opener Kokou Kah | 3:30 – 6 pm

Sunday, August 14

• Nicollet Chalk Art Festival | 10 am – 6 pm
• 3D Chalk Art Installation at IDS Center | 10 am – 6 pm
• Live Spray Painting on Nicollet | 10 am - 6pm
• Street Eats (food trucks and more) on Nicollet | 10 am – 6 pm
• Nicollet Makers Market Festival Edition | 10 am – 6 pm
• Pedal to the Metal | 10 am – 6 pm
• Mobile Sign Shop | 11:30 am – 3:30 pm
• La Luchadora | 11 am – 5 pm
• Street Show performances on Nicollet | 11 am, 12:30, 3:30, and 4:30 pm
• zAmya Theater Project “Second Chances” encore | 2 – 3 pm

Nicollet Chalk Art Festival

The centerpiece of the Downtown Street Art Festival is a two-block-long series of chalk installations by 18 local and national artists, our largest lineup of artists ever. Watch the artists as they transform the sidewalks of Nicollet between 6th and 8th streets from 10 am – 6 pm with their unique artistic vision in vibrant tempera. While enjoying the art, make sure to channel your inner artist and contribute to our community chalk mandala.

3D Chalk Installation at IDS Center

Watch world-renowned local chalk artist Shawn McCann as he creates a special 3D chalk installation in the IDS Center outdoor plaza. McCann uses advanced techniques and anamorphic perspective to produce an illusion of depth and perspective for your perfect festival Instagram moment.

Live Spray Painting on Nicollet

The excitement of live mural painting continues as our largest lineup of local and national artists showcase their unique sense of color, style and technique on Nicollet.

Interactive Arts Activities for the Whole Family

Tap into your inner street artist and contribute to the massive community chalk mandala, design and take home a custom sign with the Mobile Sign Shop, contribute to a community carving and metal pour by Pedal to the Metal, or screen print your own limited edition DMSAF poster with La Luchadora.

Street Eats on Nicollet

Enjoy street games, lunch from Street Eats vendor Bougie Waffle, or a snack from a selection of local food trucks and street vendors #OnNicollet between 6th and 8th streets.

Street Showcase on Nicollet

Enjoy live performances from our Street Show favorites on the big festival stage. Produced by the DID and curated by the Warming House, Street Show has brought more than 2,000 hours of paid street performance from local musicians, artists, dancers, painters and others to the sidewalks of downtown Minneapolis since 2018. For the season schedule, visit www.onnicollet.com/schedule.

Nicollet Makers Market Street Art Festival Edition

Catch a special weekend appearance of the Nicollet Makers Market, the weekly downtown craft and art market that features locally made and designed goods. More than 15 artists and makers will bring their unique wares to the street, including live screen printing.

Second Chances with the zAmya Theater Project

This community-based theater brings unique perspective to the street with a reboot of their successful “Second Chances” live performance on Nicollet between 6th and 7th streets that builds understanding and connection to those both with and without experience in homelessness.

Downtown Street Art Festival concert

Following a full day of street art on Saturday, August 13, headliner Bad Bad Hats and opener Kokou Kah will be taking the stage #OnNicollet between at 7th street for a free concert. Self-described as a true fusion Liberian American artist, Kokou Kah will get you ready to groove during his opening set at 3:30 pm. Following Kokou Kah’s performance, indie rock trio, and Minneapolis natives, Bad Bad Hats will be taking to the stage for a fun and upbeat-filled close out to the first day of the Downtown Street Art Festival.

Street Art Festival In-person and Virtual Tours

Staff from Hennepin Theatre Trust will be offering tours throughout the festival highlighting the many amazing downtown murals, including the new Prince mural, as well as the latest installation of the It’s the People exhibition. Throughout the festival, you will see QR codes with scannable links to the Downtown Street Art Festival online tour with more information (in both English and Spanish) on the participating visual artists and artworks. While the festival is best experienced in person, this platform provides another opportunity for people to experience the festival from their living rooms. The link to the virtual tour will be available during the festival on the festival website at mplsstreetartfest.com.

To learn more about the Downtown Minneapolis Street Art Festival, visit MplsStreetArtFest.com or follow along on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.