Minneapolis Sculpture Garden Art Fair 2026

The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden Art Fair debuted to great success in 2024 and will be back for it's third year in 2026 on Mother's Day Weekend. The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden is one of Minneapolis' most popular parks. It features more than 60 sculptures from the Walker Art Center's collection, including the iconic Spoonbridge and Cherry. In 2025, the Sculpture Garden Art Fair was voted the #1 Art Fair in the Nation (Sunshine Artist Magazine).The event is owned and operated by Homespun Events, the team behind the Minnehaha Falls Art Fair, City of Lakes Art Fair, and the Minnesota Merry Market at the State Fair. 

Minneapolis Sculpture Garden Art Fair hours will be 10am-6pm Saturday, and 10am-5pm Sunday. The event will feature approximately 175 artist booths, along with music, crafts, botanicals, food, and more. Set up will take place Friday morning and early afternoon. Every artist will be assigned a load in time to allow for ease of traffic flow. Overnight security will be provided Friday and Saturday nights.

Under the iconic Cowles Conservatory glass building, 16 artists will be selected for a featured Botanical Section.

The event is a ZERO WASTE event. This means that artists, food trucks, and other vendors will not be allowed to use items that are not compostable or recyclable. IE-You are not allowed to put your art in plastic bags to send with customers. (The art itself does not need to be recyclable or compostable, but sustainable art practices are encouraged.)

• Application Opens - December 1, 2025
• Application Deadline - March 1, 2026
• Jury in Progress - March 2-6, 2026
• Jury results emailed with artist contracts - March 11, 2026
• Deadline for Booth Fees + Contracts + ST-19s - March 27, 2026
• Deadline for Artist Cancellation - March 30, 2026 with full refund. 50% refund for cancellations between March 31 and April 10, 2026. No refunds for artist cancellations after April 10, 2026.
• Booth Location and Artist Packets emailed - April 17, 2026
• Booth Set Up - May 8, 2025
• Art Fair Day 1 - May 9, 2026
• Art Fair Day 2 - May 10, 2026
• Booth Tear Down - May 10, 2026

 

AWARDS

1. Best in Show: This will be awarded to the artist whose art scores the highest average jury score. Art will be judged on process, creativity, originality, difficulty, and overall design.
2. Best Booth Presentation: This will be awarded to the artist whose booth is most visually appealing.
3. Most Engaging: This will be awarded to the artist who creates the most engaging customer interaction at their booth.

Each award-winning artist will receive automatic entry and 50% off their booth fee for the 2027 Minneapolis Sculpture Garden Art Fair.

JURY PROCESS

Approximately 175 artists will exhibit in the 2026 show. The slots will be filled through a competitive jury process based on the jury score within each category. At least 2 rounds of invitations are standard. 

Each artist is required to submit a total of five (5) images (four images of CURRENT work and one booth image) along with a $30 NON-REFUNDABLE jury fee per media. All work to be exhibited must be represented in the images. Each of the four images should feature individual pieces that accurately represent the body of work to be exhibited; work shown in the images must be representative of current work. 

Artists may apply once per media. Collaborating artists (defined as “Artist Partner” on ZAPP™) may apply to participate at the event, but only joint work may be shown and sold and both artists must be present for the duration of the event. Both names must appear on all application materials and both artists must contribute to the creation of the art pieces.

RULES/REGULATIONS

• All artists must be onsite during the festival, though we are flexible to other staff/family/friends working the booth at times too. 
• No AI Art
• No sell through items. (Buy/Sell not allowed)
• Artists may only sell items represented in their application and only sell items within the media category they were juried into. 
• Artists are responsible for proper insurance and protection of work and setup. Minneapolis Sculpture Garden Art Fair and Homespun Gifts and Decor are not responsible for loss or damages. 
• All work must be for sale. Artists retain 100% of their sales and are responsible for the collection and reporting of applicable sales tax.
• Artist booths must be open all hours of the festival. No late arrivals or early exits. 
• Artists must provide a tent and setup that all withstand wind and rain. 40 pounds per tent leg is the safety standard. We can not allow artists to use a tent that seems unsafe for neighboring artists or attendees. Shade tents are typically not acceptable. If you have any questions or doubts about the tent you plan to use, please ask in advance.
• As a zero waste event, artists will not be allowed to use items that are not compostable or recyclable. IE-artists are not allowed to put their art in plastic bags to send with customers. (The art itself does not need to be recyclable or compostable, but sustainable art practices are encouraged.)

Accepted artists will have the option to purchase a single booth or double booth.  Single booths will be at least 10x10 feet. Double booths will be at least 10x20 feet.  

Standard Single Booth Fee: $375
Standard Double Booth Fee: $750
Premium/Corner Booth Fee: $475
Discounted Booth Fee: $275

All booths will be set up on a grassy area in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden park or in the adjacent parking lot. Due to the nature of a grassy park, we do not guarantee that booths will be on perfectly level ground.  Please plan accordingly.

Minneapolis Sculpture Garden Art Fair will assign vendors their booth space. However, if you are interested in being featured in the Botanical Market under the iconic Cowles Conservatory glass building, please choose Botanical as your medium. 16 artists will be chosen for this feature, all of whose work must feature botanicals (ie-plants, flowers, greenery, lichen, etc) either in natural elements or theme.

Deadline for Artist Cancellation - March 30, 2026 with full refund. 50% refund for cancellations between March 31 and April 10, 2026. No refunds for artist cancellations after April 10, 2026.