History of the Lake Worth Beach Street Painting Festival

Since its creation in 1995 by a small group of Lake Worth residents in an ambitious effort to revitalize their city, the Street Painting Festival has grown into the most highly anticipated free cultural event in South Florida, and now, in its third decade attracts tens of thousands of visitors each year.

The art of street painting has attracted onlookers since the 16th century, when crowds would gather to watch as itinerant artists created masterworks on the cobblestones.

Presented each February with the support of the City of Lake Worth, the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, corporate sponsors, small businesses, artists and volunteers, the Lake Worth Street Painting Festival claims bragging rights as the largest free festival of its kind in the world. Hundreds of artists converge, using chalk as their brush and the pavement as canvas, to turn the downtown streets of Lake Worth into a temporary gallery of art, creating a diverse outdoor exhibition of large scale traditional, contemporary and 3D illusionist paintings directly on the asphalt.

The Street Painting Festival committee works in partnership with the City of Lake Worth, the Community Redevelopment Agency and the LULA Arts District, creating an event that today serves as an inspiration and model for similar events throughout the United States and abroad.

The Street Painting Festival was honored to receive the prestigious Cultural Council Of Palm Beach County Council's Choice Muse Award for cultural excellence in 2014. A testament to the festival's mission the Street Painting Festival has aspired to be the epitome of what a muse is and what a muse does: to be a source of inspiration that engages, inspires, encourages, motivates and fosters artistic creativity, affecting the lives of thousands of individuals.

We are grateful to the Cultural Council for its continued encouragement and partnership in helping to make it all possible.

The spirit of the event and the collaborative exhibition — where artists perform their craft as viewers watch — allows for exchanges during the process, creating a sense of active participation among all who attend.

Oh behalf of the Lake Worth Street Painting Festival we look forward to seeing you at the next festival!