Pasadena Chalk Festival 2026 at Brookside Park

Every September, the paved paths of Brookside Park turn into one very long, very colorful canvas. The Pasadena Chalk Festival is back for its 33rd year this Saturday and Sunday, September 26 and 27, and it's one of the easiest things to do in Los Angeles this weekend if you want something free, outdoors and good for all ages.

More than 500 chalk artists show up for the two days. Some are professional muralists, some are students, and a lot of them spend both days on hands and knees finishing a single piece. By Sunday afternoon the ground is covered with murals, from giant portraits to the kind of 3D illusions that look like holes in the pavement from exactly one spot.

Watching the work happen

The fun part is that you're not looking at finished pieces behind a rope. You walk right up to each artist's patch of pavement and watch the layers go down in real time. Come back a few hours later and the same square looks completely different. If you have kids, this is the part they'll remember: chalk dust everywhere, artists in knee pads, pastels lined up in boxes.

Saturday's session runs from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Sunday opens a little later at 11 a.m. and also wraps at 6:30 p.m. Sunday afternoon is when most murals are close to done, so that's the best time for photos.

Food, music and the auction

Food trucks park on site, and local vendors set up alongside an art gallery. DJ Cadillac G handles the music. There's also a silent auction, and the proceeds go to the festival's organizer, Light Bringer Project, a Pasadena nonprofit that funds arts education programs for underprivileged kids.

Getting there and practical info

The festival sits in Brookside Park next to the Kidspace Children's Museum, at 480 North Arroyo Boulevard in Pasadena, just below the Rose Bowl. Admission is free and so is parking, which is rare for anything near the Arroyo. You can register through the Eventbrite page ahead of time, but you don't need to pay a cent to walk in.

A few tips:

• Wear shoes you don't mind getting dusty. The chalk travels.
• Bring sunscreen and water. Much of the festival is on open pavement with not much shade.
• Keep strollers and feet off the edges of works in progress. Artists will thank you.

If you're building a list of LA events this weekend, pair this with a walk around the Rose Bowl loop or a stop at Kidspace next door. For more free outdoor art and street fairs, browse the festivals category or see what else is on around Los Angeles.