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2026 "City of Mural" Community Festival

City of Mural Community Festival
Paint the Park
๐€๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ–๐Ÿ๐Ÿ”, ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ” | ๐๐š๐ฒ ๐‚๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ, ๐Œ๐ข๐œ๐ก๐ข๐ ๐š๐ง
The City of Mural Community Festival is back—with something new!

This year, we're excited to announce that ๐ญ๐ฐ๐จ new murals will be created in Bay City during August 11–16. We'll be revealing the mural locations soon, so stay tuned!

To celebrate the festival and help shape its future, we're introducing our very first ๐๐š๐ข๐ง๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐๐š๐ซ๐ค—๐š ๐จ๐ง๐ž-๐๐š๐ฒ ๐œ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ ๐Ÿ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐ซ๐š๐ข๐ฌ๐ž๐ซ ๐š๐ญ ๐–๐ž๐ง๐จ๐ง๐š๐ก ๐๐š๐ซ๐ค.

Join us as we celebrate everything we've accomplished over the past three years while looking ahead to the next chapter of Bay City's public art movement.

Explore completed murals, watch artists create new works on the Friendship Wall, meet local artists, enjoy live entertainment, and help us raise funds for the next generation of public art projects.
Every dollar raised supports future mural installations, youth art opportunities, and community collaborations that continue to make Bay City a more vibrant and welcoming place. 

2026 mural festival flyer.jpeg

๐๐š๐ข๐ง๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐๐š๐ซ๐ค ๐„๐ฏ๐ž๐ง๐ญ
Thursday, August 13, 2026
10:00 AM – 10:00 PM
Wenonah Park | Bay City, Michigan

 ๐„๐ฏ๐ž๐ง๐ญ ๐‡๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ฅ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐ฌ
Showcase of murals completed throughout Bay City over the past three years
Live mural painting on the Friendship Wall

 Preview of 10 future mural locations and proposed mural designs

 Community voting on future mural concepts

 Paint & Sip Fundraiser (21+) led by local artist
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1994078889638?aff=oddtdtcreator

 The 30 Collection – 30 Artists • 30 Original Works • One Community

 Paint the Park Cornhole Tournament
https://www.facebook.com/events/1359175029615389

 Live music throughout the day

 Local vendors, artists, and Youth Market
Food vendors and food trucks (pending availability)
https://forms.gle/p7xJ2ucyZgrtBVuc9

 Morning yoga
Outdoor sound healing
Bay-Arenac ISD collaborative mural project
Opportunities to sponsor future murals and support public art 

๐‚๐š๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ ๐€๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฌ
We're looking for artists to help shape Bay City's next chapter!
Submit your original mural design for one of seven future mural walls.Artists from Bay City, across Michigan, and beyond are invited to apply.

Application Deadline: August 6, 2026
https://forms.gle/DLY7p5XkRvQWa4Mp6

After submissions close, the community vote will take into the consideration for the finalist designs. Selected murals will be installed over the coming years as sponsorship funding becomes available.

โ€‹

 ๐…๐ซ๐ข๐ž๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ก๐ข๐ฉ ๐ฐ๐š๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐€๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ ๐€๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ข๐œ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง: ( this is not the 7 wall's call for artist application, this is the application for painting on the friendship wall, for more details, check : https://www.unitedwego.org/friendship-wall-project)
link to apply for painting on friendship wall:
https://forms.gle/XtM2TybTBQ7jhdqn9

โ€‹

 ๐๐ž๐œ๐จ๐ฆ๐ž ๐š ๐Œ๐ฎ๐ซ๐š๐ฅ ๐’๐ฉ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐จ๐ซ
Help transform Bay City's walls into inspiring works of public art.
We're seeking businesses, organizations, foundations, and individuals to sponsor future mural projects. Your investment supports local artists, creates opportunities for youth, and leaves a lasting legacy in our community.

๐–๐š๐ง๐ง๐š ๐ฃ๐จ๐ข๐ง ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐š๐ฌ ๐ฏ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ž๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ?
Volunteer Link:
https://forms.gle/A9ae4rtR58nC1v3SA

๐ˆ๐ง๐ญ๐ž๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š ๐ฐ๐š๐ฅ๐ฅ? ๐–๐ž,๐ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฏ๐ž ๐ญ๐จ ๐œ๐จ๐ง๐ง๐ž๐œ๐ญ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ.

Whether you've supported the City of Mural Community Festival since the beginning or you're joining us for the first time, we invite you to celebrate creativity, collaboration, and community with us.

Together, we're not just painting walls—we're creating spaces that tell Bay City's story and inspire future generations.

2025 "City of Mural" Community Festival
Sponsor Highlight

โ€‹Thank You to Our Sponsors 

This festival would not have been possible without the support of our incredible sponsors. Each played a vital role in bringing art, music, and community spirit to life this year:

  • ๐ŸŒŸ Bay Area Community Foundation – for their generous grant that made this year’s festival shine.

  • ๐Ÿ‘ฉ‍๐ŸŽจ Covenant HealthCare – for sponsoring our youth workshops and investing in the next generation of creators.

  • ๐Ÿจ Bay Valley – for providing comfortable lodging for our mural artists.

  • ๐Ÿ  Wing Home Inspection – for their generous sponsorship and community commitment.

  • ๐ŸŽจ Ace Hardware – for sponsoring our paint supplies, helping us bring color to Bay City.

  • ๐Ÿ’™ United Bay Community Credit Union – for supporting us three years in a row with steadfast community care.

  • ๐Ÿ™Œ Members First Credit Union – for stepping up as our Community Champion sponsor this year.

Together, you helped transform walls into lasting symbols of unity, creativity, and pride for Bay City.

Highlight of 2025

2025 City of Mural Community Festival: A Celebration of Creativity and Community

2025 City of Mural Community Festival: A Celebration of Creativity and Community

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The 2025 City of Mural Community Festival marked the third annual celebration of public art in Bay City, bringing vibrant creativity to life across the city from August 21–25. This year’s festival featured six mural artists who transformed more than 2,000 square feet of walls at four prominent locations — Wenonah Park, 517 Washington Ave (Dunlop Building), Bay City Central High School, and Legacy Coffee House — into powerful, colorful public murals that reflect unity, diversity, and connection.

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Over the five-day event, artists, youth, and community members collaborated to paint, share stories, and build community, with live music, youth activities, mural tours, and special events engaging visitors throughout Bay City. A highlight of the festival was the debut of the Ever-Living Friendship Wall, a collaborative public art space where attendees could leave their own creative mark, guided by mural artist Sergio Arce.

โ€‹

The festival’s success was supported by generous sponsors including the Bay Area Community Foundation, Covenant HealthCare, Bay Valley, Wing Home Inspection, Ace Hardware, United Bay Community Credit Union, and Members First Credit Union, whose contributions helped bring art, music, and community spirit to life.

โ€‹

The 2025 event continued to strengthen Bay City’s identity as a vibrant hub for public art, community engagement, and creative expression — inspiring residents and visitors alike to connect through color, collaboration, and celebration.

City of mural outdoor banners.png

Key Highlights:

  • 8 mural artists, 2,000 sq. ft. of mural space, and two days of celebration.

  • over 1,000 attendees, 20+ vendors, 10 live musicians, and 6 speakers.

  • 70 participants (adults and youth) contributing to the artwork.

  • Featured multiple times in local media and over 100 social media posts reaching 200,000 people.

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