Art Fair Teen Application

Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art is proud to announce its third annual art fair, taking place from October 3–4, 2026, in Bentonville, Arkansas. This year marks the second time Crystal Bridges will host teenage artists to display and sell their art. Teens have the exciting opportunity to gain experience participating in an art fair, learn skills related to displaying and selling their art, and join a cohort of their peers to collaborate as a community of emerging artists.

Teen artists aged 15–19 from across Arkansas and the surrounding region will be selected to showcase their fine artworks in various mediums, including ceramics, wood, textiles, glass, drawing, painting, mixed media, jewelry, photography, metal/iron, and sculpture.

Teen artists will learn the basics of selling artwork, creating an artistic brand, and participating in an art fair through 5 required meetings leading up to the art fair on October 3–4, 2026. To be eligible to participate, teens must be available for the following dates and times:

May 19, 2026, 5 – 6:30 pm

August 18, 2026, 5 – 6:30 pm

September 1, 2026, 5 – 6:30 pm

September 15, 2026, 5 – 6:30 pm

September 29, 2026, 5 – 6:30 pm

October 2, 2026, 4:30 – 6 pm

October 3, 2026, 10 am – 6 pm

October 4, 2026, 10 am – 4 pm

Crystal Bridges Museum Art Fair
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art

Event Size
80+ exhibitors
12,000+ attendees
15 teen artists
15 college artists

Timeline
Artist Application Deadline: April 19, 2026
Artists Notified: April 27, 2026
Registration Deadline: May 4, 2026
Cohort Meeting #1: Introduction: May 19, 2026
Cohort Meeting #2: Branding and Materials: August 18, 2026
Cohort Meeting #3 Selling and Pricing Art: September 1, 2026
Cohort Meeting #4 Engaging Buyers: September 15, 2026
Cohort Meeting #5 Final Check In: September 29, 2026
Load In and Artist mingle: October 2, 2026
Art Fair: October 3-4, 2026

Art Fair Hours
Friday, October 2: 2-7 PM (Teens present from 4:30-6 pm for Artist and Member Mingle)
Saturday, October 3: 10-6 PM
Sunday, October 4: 10-4 PM

Museum Hours
Friday, October 2: 10 – 8 pm
Saturday, October 3 10 am – 6 pm
Sunday, October 4 10 am – 6 pm

Artists must submit images of 3-5 artworks and a short bio about themselves and their work. All images must be in .jpg, .tiff, or .png, high resolution file.

Elegibility Criteria
The following rules and policies ensure fairness to all participating artists and festival guests. Any failure to comply will result in immediate removal from the CBMAA Art Fair.

Artwork must be handmade, skillfully created, and produced by the artist.

All reproductions must be clearly labeled “REPRODUCTION” or “LIMITED EDITION REPRODUCTION.”

All work must be for sale.

Artists must comply with the logistic rules that will be sent in the Artists Information Packet after acceptance.

Artists must personally host their display booth throughout the CBMAA Art Fair.

Artists who sell out of their work must remain with their booths for the duration of the CBMAA Art Fair.

CBMAA reserves the right to remove any artist from the present or future CBMAA Art Fair for breach of the written participation rules, the laws of the State of Arkansas, or for disruptive/abusive behavior.

Artists are expected to comply with all regulations and respect artistry standards.

Artists may not
Exhibit or sell work by other artists.
Display imported items and/or mass-produced work
Exhibit in any other art fair in Northwest Arkansas the weekend of October 3-4, 2026, if they are participating at the CBMAA Arts Fair.
Display ribbons or awards from any other or previous shows.

Artists will be selected by a jury of art professionals. Jurying will take place shortly after the application closes, artists will be notified of selection on April 27, 2026.

Jury Details
The jury is comprised of three art professionals.

The jury will review applications by viewing each artist’s set of images individually on a monitor, without identifying information. A well-balanced show of artistic excellence, quality, creativity, and overall impression of work are the criteria for the selection of exhibiting artists. An additional number of artists may be retained for a waiting list of alternates based on the scores received in their category. Decisions of the jury panel are final. The jury panel review process is closed.

The CBMAA Art Fair committee supports the jury review process and decisions made by the panel and will not, as a normal course of business, circumvent or alter these selections. CBMAA Art Fair committee reserves the right to reject any application if it does not comply with the rules outlined in the application process.

Spaces
Teen artists will be located inside a large tent with other teens. Each artist will be provided with a1 6-foot rectangular table to display works.

Display materials can be brought by artists or provided by the museum. More information on this will be shared during cohort meetings.

All display and booth materials must be approved by the museum.

Artist Amenities:
Booth sitters and volunteer support
Artists’ lounge with snacks and drinks
Assistance with load-in and load-out