34th Carmel Art Festival

33rd Carmel Art Festival

Carmel-by-the-Sea, California

May 15-17, 2026 “…best one ever!”

The 33rd Annual Carmel Art Festival was once again held in Devendorf Park in Carmel-by-the-Sea, bringing together artists and art lovers, visitors, and residents to celebrate Carmel’s artistic heritage and legacy. FREE public event, except GALA and Workshops.

Friday, May 15, 2026 - Artists brought their newly created paintings to Devendorf Park between 10am & 1pm.

New this year: you could “reserve”/pay for your painting starting at 2pm but you could not take it home until 4:30pm after the Awards Ceremony.

The awards ceremony was at 4pm - 4:30pm.

All paintings were sold on a “buy now” basis starting on Friday, May 15.

Judge of the 2026 Carmel Art Festival:

Nathan Lutz, Executive Director, Carmel Bach Festival, was the 2026 Plein Air Judge. “The act of painting en plein air shares a quiet kinship with music. Art whether heard or seen has the power to attune us more deeply to the present moment.” ‍ ‍

Friday May 15th, 2026 from 6pm-9pm in Devendorf Park:

Opening Night Galamingle with the artists, listen to live music, and:

Food provided by Nora’s, winner of the Golden Pine Cone Award and new favorite local restaurant offering chef-crafted dishes, elevated comfort cuisine with a Carmel twist; and:

Wines from Folktale Winery & Vineyards, and Scheid Vineyards.

Commemorative wine glass to keep.

GALA TICKETS $100

Saturday, May 16, 2026 - Mission Street next to Devendorf Park

Watch artists paint all around Carmel-by-the-Sea in the morning for the 3-hour Quick Draw. They then bring them to the closed-off Mission Street for judging, auctioning, and sale.

11am - 1pm: display of all the 60 paintings & place your bids until 1pm.

11am - 12Noon: Judging

12Noon: Awards Ceremony

Want to watch them paint between 8am and 11am? Many of them stayed within the commercial district right around Devendorf Park.

Saturday, May 16, 2026 - Devendorf Park

2pm to 4pm - Paint-off & Demonstration. Such fun!!! Watch 2 teams of 5 juried artists in action! Each team painted ONE painting - yes, all 5 painted on the same canvas!!! 4pm - 4:30pm - Judging and Auction. The painting that had the HIGHEST WON. Artists and those who participated in the AUCTION received a special chef crafted piece of CAKE.

Sunday, May 17, 2026 - Devendorf Park

New this year: On Sunday, May 17, artists were able to sell one studio painting at the festival that they brought from home. This addition was a phenomenal success.

About the art that was sold throughout the weekend:

Demonstration and workshop paintings plus other paintings they produced since May 13 that were not placed into the competition. This way, there were new paintings up each day for the public to view and purchase right until the festival closed at 3 pm on Sunday.

LIVE ENTERTAINMENT IN DEVENDORF PARK THROUGHOUT THE WEEKEND

Friday, May 15, 2026 :

11am – 2pm - Nick Williams Trio

2pm-4pm – Dan Levitan, Harp player came from the Bay area courtesy of the Bach Festival – he played to a delighted audience while Nathan Lutz, Executive Director of the Carmel Bach Festival judged the 120 paintings in the plein air competition.

6pm – 9pm – Rjae HAAS Band of 4 musicians played everything from Blues and Rock, 60s to 90s music. THEY ROCKED. We have already asked them to come back for 2027. Hope they can! They performed in Carmel-by-the-Sea for the first time.  www.rjaehaasband.com – they were the live entertainment during the Carmel Art Festival Opening GALA event with Nora’s food and Folktale’s wines.  Tickets $100 at the door.

Saturday, May 16, 2026:

11am – 2pm – Stu Heydon Blues Band

Sunday, May 17, 2026

10am to 10:30am – Sofia Lavering, 15-year old singer/songwriter made her debut as part of the “Youth” program at the Carmel Art Festival. Please come and encourage her. EXCELLENT PERFORMER! WE WANT HER BACK NEXT YEAR!

10:30am to 12Noon – The Dance Center of Carmel’s group of high school students will perform.  www.dancecarmel.com

12Noon to 3pm – Rotary Club Band