Art and creativity heal and connect our community. Join us as we celebrate 15 years of celebrating local creators. 

Arts and Culture are an integral part of day-to-day life in Salem. This annual festival has become a source of pride and revenue for hundreds of creative professionals and a major economic boost to the local community, with over 7500 attendees annually. 

Art festivals are important to communities as they provide an opportunity to come together and celebrate culture, art, and tradition. They contribute to local economies by bringing in visitors and revenues and can help to preserve cultural practices and build community identity.

SALEM ARTS FESTIVAL – JUNE 2-4

Celebrating arts, culture, and community in historic Salem, Massachusetts

SALEM, Mass. – Celebrate the arts, culture, creativity, and community at the 15th annual Salem Arts Festival June 2 through 4. This free and popular family-friendly event will feature a variety of art, music, dance, and theatre performances throughout downtown Salem. 

Public activities include multiple outdoor performance areas, onsite art-making for all ages, local artisans and makers selling their creations, pop-up art exhibitions in businesses around town, a live mural slam on Artists Row, and a temporary public art installation. There are events for the whole family!

Presented in collaboration by Salem Main Streets and Creative Collective, this year’s event highlights the importance of the creative workforce and how it contributes to and stabilizes the local economy. Arts and culture are an integral part of day-to-day life in Salem. This annual festival has become a source of pride and revenue for hundreds of creative professionals and a major economic boost to the local community.

“Creating community has always been the underpinning purpose of the Salem Arts Festival, and our Salem community desperately needs to heal and build together again after the past year.” John Andrews, Founder, and Founder of Creative Collective stated, “The creative community has been devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic but throughout the crisis, this community of makers, artisans, performers, and creators were integral in keeping our families and communities hopeful, entertained, and inspired. As we start to come out of the crisis, we feel it is critically important to foster, support and amplify the creative workforce by providing them with paid opportunities.”

The SAF Organizing Committee:

Kylie Sullivan, Salem Main Streets

Elise Towle Snow, Salem Main Streets

John Andrews, Creative Collective

Arielle Kaplan, Creative Collective

Kati Nalbandian, Creative Collective

Jim Bostick, Salem Arts Association

Karen Gahagan, Salem State University

Eric Small, resident

Ann Marie Catabia, Graphic Design

Jeannette Mitton Coleman, resident

Dennis Shafer, ChagallPAC

Claudia Paraschiv, Studioful

Betsy Miller, Salem State University

Linda Mullen, Grace & Diggs

Bethany Beatrice, Peabody Essex Museum

Doneeca Thurston, LynnArts/Lynn Museum

Leslie Levesque, The Phoenix School

With support from

Kate Fox and Stacia Cooper, Destination Salem

Kate Luchini, Endicott College

Christopher Wilson, SkewSound

Paige Besse

You can learn more about the awesome things happening around Salem on Destination Salem and across the North Shore on Creative North Shore.