Marietta Art in the Park is turning 40, and Historic Marietta Square is preparing to host the milestone edition of Cobb County's only juried fine art festival over Labor Day weekend. The three-day event, presented by the Marietta Business Association, runs from September 5 through September 7, 2026, featuring more than 220 juried artists, live music, family-friendly activities, and the festival's signature chalk art competition.
According to the City of Marietta, Ga., Government, the 40th annual festival will offer fine arts and crafts alongside a festival map and downtown parking information for visitors navigating the closed-off streets around the square. The city's post also lists a festival hotline, 404-966-8497, for attendees with questions during the weekend. As reported by the Georgia Business Journal, the festival was founded in 1986 and has hosted the event in Glover Park every Labor Day weekend since, making 2026 its fourth decade in the same downtown location.
A National Reputation Built Over Four Decades
The festival has earned numerous awards and recognitions over the years, including nods from the Southeast Tourism Society, which regularly names it a Top 20 Event, and from Sunshine Artist Magazine, which ranked it No. 13 nationwide in its 2022 list of the 100 Best Fine Art and Design Shows in America. Per Sunshine Artist Magazine, the festival was previously named among the best fine art shows in the country every year from 2010 through 2020.
This year's juried artist market brings artists from across the country to display original handcrafted work in categories spanning painting, photography, pottery, sculpture, jewelry, glass, woodworking, and digital media, City Lifestyle reports. All participants go through a competitive jury selection process, and the event strictly prohibits resale or imported items, according to City Lifestyle. Festival Director Carolyn Morris said reaching the 40-year milestone celebrates both Marietta's unique local character and the festival's evolution into a premier national venue for fine artists.
Chalk Art and Painted Pots Round Out the Weekend
Kids and teens can get in on the creative action too. The festival's signature Chalk Spot youth street art event, scheduled for Saturday, September 5, lets K-12 students create chalk art on 3-foot square pavement plots for a $10 fee that benefits the Marietta High School Visual Arts Club, according to Marietta.com. Participants receive sidewalk chalk and two tickets to the North Georgia State Fair while supplies last.
Elsewhere in the park, the long-standing Painted Pots exhibit will display custom-crafted ceramic planters made by local ceramic artists throughout Glover Park, adding functional public art to the landscape alongside the juried booths. The event operates as the largest annual fundraiser for the Marietta Business Association, with proceeds supporting local commercial development and fundraising activities benefiting visual arts programs in Marietta City Schools and Cobb County Schools.
Logistics for a Crowd of 55,000
The three-day festival runs daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. with free public admission, and dedicated visitor parking is located in the Cobb County parking decks on Waddell Street at Lawrence Street. Glover Park and the streets surrounding the historic square will be closed to vehicular traffic throughout the holiday weekend to accommodate the crowds. The festival draws an estimated 55,000 visitors to downtown Marietta over the three-day weekend, and nearby institutions including the Marietta/Cobb Museum of Art, the Marietta History Center, and the Earl and Rachel Smith Strand Theatre will operate with extended hours to accommodate the foot traffic.
For the participating artists, the festival offers a straightforward financial arrangement: they retain 100% of their individual sales revenue but are legally required to collect and report Cobb County's 6% sales tax on all sold items, per EntryThingy. Hoodline previously covered the 38th annual edition of the festival in 2024, when the event featured the same core lineup of juried artists, Glover Park activities, and the Chalk Spot event that returns this year for the 40th anniversary celebration.
