FALL ARTS FESTIVAL

Bugling elk, aspens glowing orange and yellow—these are true signs that fall has come to Jackson Hole. Add to that list the annual Fall Arts Festival, one of the premier art events in the West. This year marks the festival’s 42nd iteration, and the 2026 event includes more than 50 art events over 12 days. September 9–20, enjoy exhibit openings, gallery walks, plein air painting, a poster signing with Steele of his official FAF artwork, artist demonstrations, concerts and performances, a QuickDraw, art auctions, museum exhibits, and more. Mingle with nationally and internationally known artists, architects, designers, and makers. Year-round, Jackson Hole is a destination for art collectors—it has more than 30 galleries and has been consistently ranked for the last decade as the most arts-vibrant small community in the U.S. by SMU Data Arts, which annually recognizes the country’s most arts-vibrant communities and cities. During the FAF, the valley’s art scene goes into overdrive.

 

FEATURED ARTIST

 Ben Steele, who is based in the small Utah railroad town of Helper, is the Featured Artist of the 2026 Jackson Hole Fall Art Festival. Represented in Jackson Hole by Altamira Fine Art, Steele often melds art history or pop culture into his wide-ranging body of styles, allowing the subject matter to frequently shift between still life, portraiture, landscape, and more. He considers anything that keeps the art-creation experience fresh and exciting to be fair game. In his artist statement, he says, “My art journey evolved through experimentation, resulting in a lively mix of still life, portraits, landscapes, and composites.”
 
Meet Steele from 5–7 p.m. September 16 at an exclusive poster signing at Altamira Fine Art. Signed posters of his featured artwork are $55; unsigned posters are $45. Interested in Steele’s original artwork? Bid on it during the QuickDraw Auction on the Town Square on September 19.

Palates + Palettes

For more than a decade, Palates + Palettes has been one of the signature events of the Fall Arts Festival, and in 2026 it is no different. Free and welcome to everyone, this gallery walk pairs local restaurants (palates) with fine art galleries (palettes)—enjoy light bites and beverages and art; galleries often use this evening as the opening celebration for a new show. Friday, September 11, 5–8 p.m.

Western Visions Show + Sale

 The National Museum of Wildlife Art’s largest—and also most fun—annual fundraising event, the Western Visions Show + Sale, celebrates its 39th anniversary in 2026. While the show is up for the entirety of the Fall Arts Festival (it hangs September 5–27), the Show + Sale, on September 17 this year, is the big night, where you have the opportunity to not only see all of the approximately 170 works, but also to submit an intent to purchase for any of them. How does this work? Each work has a set price. The winning bidder for each piece is selected by a drawing from the pool of those who submitted an intent to purchase. Last year, artworks in the sale ranged in price from $400 to $27,000.

Most pieces are limited to 480 square inches or less, but 33 pieces (5 three-dimensional works and 28 two-dimensional works) are large format—up to 1,500 square inches. Large-format works follow a theme that changes every year. The 2026 theme is “Curiosity.” “It is a different theme every year, and it is always exciting to see how different artists respond to it,” says Madison Webb Stanko, the museum’s chief marketing officer and Western Visions show director.

 Making the event even more fun is how many of the participating artists come; about 20 percent of the attendees at the Show + Sale are artists with work in the show! All five of the artists whose work won one of the five awards given out at last year’s Western Visions are participating again in 2026, but, as of press time, whether they’ll be at Western Visions in person was unknown.

The Show + Sale party does sell out. Staying with the same ticket prices and levels that debuted last year, both VIP ($500) or Benefactor ($1,000) tickets get you entry to the VIP/Artist Lounge during the Show + Sale and to the Artists’ Party the night before. General admission tickets are $195. Buy tickets in advance online at wildlifeart.org.

QuickDraw

 What can you accomplish in 90 minutes? How about a completed painting or sculpture? QuickDraw artists do! Walk around the Town Square and watch the creative process and then, when the 90 minutes are up, maybe you’ll want to bid on your favorite piece. All of the newly created works—some with the paint still wet—immediately go to a live auction. Tickets are $30 and go on sale August 1, 2026. The event is September 19, 8 a.m.–1 p.m.

Other Events

Many other exciting events, including Arts on the Green (September 13, 10 a.m.–5:30 p.m.), take place during the Fall Arts Festival. Check the Jackson Hole Chamber of Commerce website jacksonholechamber.com/fall-arts-festival for additional details.

Showcase of Homes

Want to do more than read about some of Jackson Hole’s favorite homes? Homestead magazine is pleased to host the 14th annual Jackson Hole Showcase of Homes as one of the signature events of the Fall Arts Festival. Highlighting the diversity of architecture and design in the valley while showcasing the work of many of Jackson Hole’s best builders, architects, and interior designers, the Jackson Hole Showcase of Homes invites you to be inspired while raising funds for its nonprofit partner(s) in 2026. “The goals of the Showcase are always to celebrate the talent of our local building and design professionals while raising important funds for our charitable partner,” says Mindy Duquette, Homestead’s co-publisher and the director of the Showcase.