Inaugural Traverse City Mural Festival
Seven walls. One creative week.
September 12-17, 2025
The TC Mural Festival, led by volunteers from the Traverse City Arts Commission, aims to enhance the vitality of the Grand Traverse region through artful placemaking that builds on the community’s cultural resources. The inaugural festival will take place in the NoBo neighborhood’s Eighth Street corridor, from Lake Avenue to Barlow Street.
This week-long public art event will reflect community values, foster dialogue across all ages and abilities, inspire creativity through unexpected aesthetic experiences, and enrich the visual character and vibrancy of this well-traveled area.
Join us for the following programs during the inaugural TC Mural Festival:
Everyday Acts of Art Opening/TC Mural Festival Kickoff Celebration
Friday, September 12, 5 PM at Commongrounds
Celebrate the beginning of the mural festival with an exhibition opening at The Alluvion! Everyday Acts of Art brings together a series of intimate interventions—drawings, sculptures, wheatpastes, and more—woven into the shared spaces of Commongrounds. Created by past exhibition artists and muralists, these works are tucked around corners, above doorframes, or underfoot, encouraging visitors to slow down and discover art where they least expect it. By embedding creativity into the rhythms of daily life, this exhibition honors how small gestures of art can shape, uplift, and connect our community.
Color the Corridor: A Community Art Adventure on 8th
September 14th | 12 - 3 PM, North Boardman Lake District
Join the Traverse City Arts Commission, the Traverse Area District Library, and Old Town Playhouse for family-friendly art activities inspired by Traverse City’s first-ever mural festival. Start your creative journey at one end of 8th Street, explore the murals in progress along the corridor, and make your way to the other end to add your own artistic touch.
At the Traverse Area District Library, make your own mini print, ink it, and mark our “wall.” Take your mini masterpiece home to print again. Meet us on the front lawn, or inside in the MacGuire room in case of rain. This drop-in program is free with materials provided.
At Old Town Playhouse, help transform an old piano into a collaborative community mural. This repurposed instrument will be a canvas for your imagination. Grab some chalk and make your mark! Your contribution will become part of a living artwork that will evolve throughout the week.
Artist Panel | Every Day Acts of Art
Tuesday, September 16, 6 PM at The Alluvion
Join us for a dynamic artist panel featuring six innovative artists whose work transforms public space through large-scale mural installations. This conversation will delve into the powerful intersections of art, environment, and community, exploring how each artist approaches the act of making art that exists beyond the walls of traditional galleries.
Through vibrant color, scale, and site-responsive practice, these artists reimagine public surfaces as spaces for storytelling, resistance, memory, and joy. From neighborhood walls to civic structures, they will share insights into the challenges and possibilities of working in public view—navigating collaboration, accessibility, and the unpredictable nature of community interaction.
TC Mural Festival Closing Parade
Wednesday, September 17, 4 PM Start at Oryana 10th Street, Finish at The Filling Station
Join the North Boardman Lake District and the Traverse City Arts Commission for a vibrant parade down 8th Street! We'll gather at Oryana before making our way along the corridor, stopping at each mural to hear directly from the artists about their work and their festival experience. The parade will conclude at The Filling Station, where we’ll celebrate the newly completed murals with a festive happy hour.
We encourage multi-modal transportation to this event! Walk or bike if you are able. If driving, please park at the terminus of the event and walk to Oryana. Parking lot parking is limited!