The free, four-day festival opens Thursday, Nov. 12, with up to $50,000 in prizes for Florida artists.
By Joseph Jackson | ST. PETERSBURG (Nov. 6, 2026)
The short version
The first Booker Creek Arts Festival runs Thursday, Nov. 12, through Sunday, Nov. 15, across St. Pete's EDGE District. It's free.
Juried work by hundreds of Florida artists hangs in hotels, shops, restaurants and offices, with up to $50,000 in prizes.
Visitors vote for People's Choice until 8 p.m. Saturday. Winners are named Saturday night and Sunday at Green Bench Brewing.
St. Petersburg's EDGE District becomes a walk-through gallery next week. The first Booker Creek Arts Festival runs Nov. 12–15, free, with juried art by hundreds of Florida artists hung inside businesses along and around Central Avenue, according to the festival's website.
The festival is presented by the EDGE Business District Association. It takes its name from Booker Creek, the historic stream that runs through downtown St. Pete, according to the organizers' announcement.
What's at stake for artists?
Artists compete for up to $50,000 in jury-awarded prizes, including a $10,000 Best in Show, according to the call for artists posted by the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance. Organizers call it one of the largest prize purses for a first-year festival in the region.
Only Florida artists could enter. Applicants had to have lived in the state at least six months and be 18 or older, according to the same call.
Visitors get a say, too. People's Choice voting opens Thursday at 10 a.m. and closes Saturday at 8 p.m., according to the festival schedule.
What's on the schedule?
Art is on display in participating venues from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. most days. Individual venue hours vary. Highlights from the festival's posted schedule:
Thursday, Nov. 12
Artwork display and People's Choice voting begin, 10 a.m.
Plein air painting competition starts at noon (final sign-in 11 a.m.–noon at Mint House).
"An Evening Illuminated" light display, 7 p.m. (best seen from Ferg's).
Friday, Nov. 13
Plein air painting continues.
Arts Conservatory for Teens performance, 5–6:30 p.m., Ferg's indoor stage.
"An Evening Illuminated," 7 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 14
Glass blowing with Duncan McClellan, noon–4 p.m., lot next to 1201 Central Ave.
NOMAD Art Bus for kids, noon–5 p.m., Cappa Law lot.
Art Battle, a live mural paint-off with audience voting, 3:30–5:30 p.m., Intermezzo palm lot.
Juried award winners announced, 7:15 p.m., Green Bench Brewing.
Sunday, Nov. 15
Global Love Project chalk drawing, 10 a.m.–4 p.m., 11th Street and Central.
People's Choice and plein air winners announced, noon, Green Bench Brewing.
Festival Jazz, 3–6 p.m., COPA St. Pete (reservation required).
Running all weekend: a Florida Wildlife Corridor mural by Carrie Jadus at Green Bench Brewing (Thursday–Saturday), and installations at VIV and the Moxy Hotel lobby.
How do I get there?
The EDGE District runs between Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street and 18th Street along Central Avenue. The festival points visitors to the Central Avenue trolley, SunRunner stations, bike lanes, free two-hour street parking and private paid lots.
The festival comes the same week as the SHINE Mural Festival and Fin Fest at the St. Pete Pier. See everything else happening in our Tampa Bay events calendar.