The Greater Columbus Arts Council’s long-running summer event is known for visual arts, but visitors also will find food trucks, a fashion show, and live theater, music and dance performances.

The Greater Columbus Arts Council (GCAC) is the prime mover behind the Columbus Arts Festival, but organizers will admit that for the festival to be successful, they require the help of a certain entity with some say so over the weather.

“We had a fabulous 2024—a lot of that was thanks to Mother Nature,” says Jami Goldstein, the chief creative officer of the GCAC. “Last year was the most perfect weather, and I don’t know if we can get that lucky two years in a row.”

Whether Mother Nature cooperates or not, though, the festival will again showcase the handiwork of hundreds of gifted and diverse artists when it takes place June 6-8 on the Scioto Mile. The festival, which is free to attend, will feature about 250 exhibiting artists whose work can be purchased and taken home on the spot. To prepare for the art offerings, Goldstein encourages attendees to scroll the festival’s online gallery at columbusartsfestival.org. “It’s a great way for people to pre-shop,” she says. “They can browse by medium, and if they’re really into jewelry or glass, see who’s going to be at the festival this year.”

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The artists—who are chosen by a jury out of over a thousand applicants— include a mix of returning favorites and newcomers who, between them, hail from 31 states and Canada. “Artists know that this is a great city for art buyers,” Goldstein says. Twenty Central Ohio artists participate in an emerging festival artists program, which allows up-and-comers to better prepare for the festival experience. “We do two boot camps with them to help them understand set-up, things they need to be prepared for, like inclement weather, supplies they can bring with them, how to sell,” Goldstein says. Mixed-media artist Kate Morgan, now a festival staple, was once a participant in the program.

Although anchored in visual arts, the festival also makes use of four stages for performing artists of various stripes. “There’s dance, there’s theater, there’s music,” Goldstein says. Groups and artists performing this year include Momentum, Cultivate Dance Project, Straw and the Scarecrow, the Cordial Sins and more. For the third year, there’s also a fashion show on Friday night on the Bicentennial Park stage. “There will be four new designers and 32 looks total,” Goldstein says. “That has become a really huge hit.” Some 40 food trucks will fortify spectators as they take in all the art on offer, and abundant parking is available in the form of single spaces and garages, including the Columbus Commons garage.

And even if Mother Nature is having a bad day, the festival will go on. “We go rain or shine,” Goldstein says. “The only time we shut down is in severe weather, and we monitor that very closely.”

This story is from the Summer Entertainment Guide feature in the June 2025 issue of Columbus Monthly. Subscribe here.