Cleveland, September 4, 2025: The Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA) will host its annual Chalk Festival on Saturday, September 20, and Sunday, September 21, noon to 5:00 p.m., rain or shine. Participants and observers of all abilities and ages are invited to create and delight in sidewalk artistry alongside professional chalk artists and local community groups, families, and individuals. The CMA’s south plaza and walkways through the Fine Arts Garden and Wade Lagoon will come alive with color and beautiful storytelling.
The Chalk Festival is a modern expression of a Renaissance tradition from 16th-century Italy in which artists copied paintings of the Madonna by Raphael and his contemporaries using chalk on the plazas outside cathedrals.
“We are grateful to our partner and sponsor, Akron Children’s Hospital,” said Jordan Jiménez, director of community arts. “New this year, their Expressive Therapy team is providing a mindful drawing exercise in the garden. Be sure to stop by their tent! In addition, the CMA’s mobile art van Studio Go will be installing Chalk Village, a three-dimensional drawing space that is wheelchair accessible and great for those with limited mobility or looking for a new perspective. Both programs are free and open to all ages and abilities.
“Community programs like Chalk Festival are a beautiful example of nurturing creativity and exchanging ideas,” said Jiménez. I hope we all can take a moment to appreciate one another and strengthen our sense of belonging. I encourage everyone interested in participating to spend some time with the CMA’s collection and bring that inspiration to the event.”
Everyone can participate in the Chalk Festival! To chalk your own work, purchase a square of pavement (chalk pastels included) at the registration tent: $15 small square (includes a box of 12 chalk pastels); $20 large square (includes a box of 24 chalk pastels).
No reservations are taken. The Chalk Festival is free to visitors wishing to enjoy the artists’ work.
The CMA reserves the right to cover any work that contains a political message, hate speech, or other content that may be inappropriate for a family-friendly program.
About the Cleveland Museum of Art
The Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA) is renowned for the quality and breadth of its collection, which includes more than 66,500 artworks and spans 6,000 years of achievement in the arts. The museum is a significant international forum for exhibitions, scholarship, and performing arts and is a leader in digital innovation. One of the foremost encyclopedic art museums in the United States, the CMA is recognized for its award-winning open access program—which provides free digital access to images and information about works in the museum’s collection—and is free of charge to all. The museum is located in the University Circle neighborhood with two satellite locations on Cleveland’s west side: the Community Arts Center and Transformer Station.
The museum is supported in part by residents of Cuyahoga County through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture and made possible in part by the Ohio Arts Council (OAC), which receives support from the State of Ohio and the National Endowment for the Arts. The OAC is a state agency that funds and supports quality arts experiences to strengthen Ohio communities culturally, educationally, and economically. For more information about the museum and its holdings, programs, and events, call 888-CMA-0033 or visit cma.org.
Photos by Greg Nold