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Mark your calendars now for July 9 – 13, 2025

Over the past 59 years, the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts has become one of the top-ranked juried art fairs in the country, the highlight of the State College summer, one of the biggest non-football alumni weekends for Penn Staters, the summer’s economic anchor for downtown State College businesses, and the place to be for art, music, and fun the week after Independence Day.

For many of the 125,000+ visitors and hundreds of volunteers each year, the Arts Festival is an enduring tradition, experienced with friends and family, and not to be missed. Please explore this site to learn more about the many facets of Arts Fest. Note that the full site will be updated as of June 1, 2025. Until then, segments will be updated as they are ready. Otherwise the information will show 2024’s information.

2025 Sidewalk Sale and Exhibition

Our Sidewalk Sale and Exhibition is the perfect place for shopping while you support independent artist-entrepreneurs across the country. Who needs a big box store or website named after a river when you have so much cool stuff at your fingertips? Whether you’re looking for a work of art, piece of jewelry, housewares, or all of the above, our artists have something for you. You’ll find some of the country’s most talented artists in a wide variety of media from ceramics to wood. Are you trying to find one an artist you bought something from–but whose name you’re forgotten? Reach out to us, we’re usually able to identify the work and connect you to the artist.

The Sidewalk Sale and Exhibition is open from 10:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m., Thursday, July 10 through Saturday, July 12, and 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, July 13.

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That’s Entertainment!

We present a wide variety of performances on both outdoor and indoor stages. Is there anything better than spending a lazy July evening on Old Main Lawn or in Sidney Friedman Park listening to some great music? Or do you prefer the high energy of the Allen Street Stage? Or is beating the heat in the air-conditioned comfort of The State Theatre more your style? From bluegrass to rock to jazz to gospel, there will be a show you’ll like at this summer’s Festival.

Performances start at 11:30 a.m. and continue through 11:00 p.m. Thursday, July 10, through Saturday, July 12. Our final show starts on Sunday, July 13 at 3:00 p.m.

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Images 2025

Images 2025 is our juried gallery exhibition—a great venue for both emerging and established artists. The show is open to Pennsylvania artists aged 16 and up working in the following 2D categories: drawing, painting, mixed media, photography, hand-pulled prints, watercolor, fiber, paper, and digital art. Digital images of original work produced since January 1, 2022 may be submitted. The exhibition will hang in Schlow Centre Region Library for the month of July.

Image: 2024 Best of Show winner Doubled Parked, by Nasir Young, Willow Grove, PA

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Children and Youth Sidewalk Sale

The Children and Youth Sidewalk sale is a great way to open the Festival. It’s a chance for boys and girls to develop both their artistic and entrepreneurial potential by giving them the opportunity to sell original work that they have made. Artists aged 8 through 18 who live in, or have relatives in the following counties – Blair, Centre, Clearfield, Clinton, Huntingdon, Mifflin and Union – are eligible to participate. A full listing of rules is found in the application.

The Children and Youth Sidewalk Sale is Wednesday, July 10 from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. The deadline to submit a Children & Youth Sidewalk Sale application will be Friday, May 30, 2025.

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2025 Banner Competition

The banner Exhibition and Competition is one of the signature events of the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts. In fact, banners were a part of the very first Festival in 1967! During the Festival, banners hang over South Allen Street, bringing color and movement to the already joyous atmosphere. In the off season, we hang banners in public buildings like the State College Municipal Building and Schlow Centre Region Library. Banners can be made by individuals or groups. Making a banner is a great way to celebrate a milestone of a community organization.

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