Press Release
ArtWeek SouthCoast, the region’s collaborative arts festival celebrating creativity across Southeastern Mass., is gearing up for its 2026 return in May, and the newly launched website is now live at artweeksouthcoast.org. Artists, cultural organizations, municipalities, local businesses, and community groups are invited to submit events for inclusion in this year’s festival schedule at artweek southcoast.org/submit-your-event.
ArtWeek SouthCoast takes place May 8–17, 2026, offering opportunities for residents and visitors to experience artists and cultural spaces throughout the region. The festival encourages a wide range of experiences, including hands-on workshops, live performances, gallery exhibitions, open studios, artist talks, family-friendly activities, and behind-the-scenes opportunities that invite the public to connect with the arts in meaningful ways.
“ArtWeek SouthCoast is about making creativity more visible and more connected across our communities,” said Patti Rego, Director of Communications and Community Engagement at the SouthCoast Community Foundation, which is leading coordination efforts for the 2026 festival. “The Foundation has long supported arts and culture across the South Coast, and over the past decade, our Creative SouthCoast partnership with the Barr Foundation has deepened that commitment, allowing us to invest more intentionally in the people and places where cultural expression helps communities thrive.”
This year’s celebration will engage returning partners from Fall River, New Bedford, Dartmouth, Marion, Westport, Fairhaven, Mattapoisett, Somerset, and Wareham, while also welcoming new voices, new communities, and new creative leaders from across Southeastern Massachusetts, including Attleboro, Brockton, Taunton and neighboring cities and towns.
“New Bedford Creative has been involved with ArtWeek SouthCoast from the very beginning, and we continue to be inspired by how it champions the incredible talent of our region,” said Margo Saulnier, Director, Creative Strategies at New Bedford Creative. “ArtWeek SouthCoast not only showcases artists — it invites the public to participate, explore, and experience arts and culture in unexpected ways. That sense of access and shared discovery is what makes this festival so impactful for our communities across the South Coast.”
With dozens of arts experiences expected across the region, ArtWeek SouthCoast invites the public to start exploring early, mark calendars, and plan their own path through performances, exhibitions, demonstrations, and opportunities to connect with local artists and cultural spaces.
Visit https://artweeksouthcoast.org/events to see what is already scheduled for this year.
Events will continue to be added on an ongoing basis as submissions come in.
As the first regional continuation of ArtWeek MA, ArtWeek SouthCoast remains one of only two such festivals in the Commonwealth, today expanding into a more inclusive and region-wide celebration than ever before.
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