San Diego's Original Fine Art Festival

About Us

Known fondly as the largest fine art festival in southern California, Mission Federal ArtWalk is celebrating its 28th year of bringing together all facets of the arts to promote the joy and investment in owning original artwork. ArtWalk features more than 350 artists from California, neighboring states, and Mexico, who display their original art for exhibit and sale. What makes Mission Federal ArtWalk unique is the opportunity to engage directly with artists who are respected in their field. Thousands of pieces of artwork are on display including paintings, sculpture, glasswork and photography. In addition, this year’s festivities will be interspersed with six stages hosting live performances, ranging from music to dance. ArtWalk takes place in San Diego’s Little Italy neighborhood, filling more than 17 city blocks with art and entertainment. The two-day event, held on Saturday, April 28 and Sunday, April 29 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., is free to attend thanks to the support of its corporate sponsors.

New for 2012, choreographer Peter Kalivas brings dozens of dance performers from San Diego-based dance companies to a dedicated stage during the “event within an event”, “Dance on the Edge.” Dancers will present a variety of styles over the course of the festival, totaling 14 hours of live performances. Along with the new elements of ArtWalk are activities that are back by popular demand such as KidsWalk, an event within the open-air fine art festival that provides more than 20 interactive arts activities including painting, performing arts, music and more. While strolling through the streets of Little Italy, visitors are also welcome to listen to live music, grab a bite at one of the many terrific eateries and partake in creative vignettes of performing and interactive entertainment.

Mission Federal ArtWalk has partnered with organizations including the Little Italy Association, the City of San Diego, the San Diego International Airport, the County of San Diego, Cymer, Scripps Health, the Union-Tribune, Thomas Jefferson School of Law, the San Diego Visual Arts Network, and many more to create a spectacular event that attracts more than 120,000 attendees each year and contributes more than $1,000,000 annually to the local San Diego economy.

For more information and directions, visit www.missionfederalartwalk.org. ArtWalk updates are also available on Twitter at @ArtWalkSD or on Facebook at ArtWalkSD.