Fine.

We know how to style a new outfit.

And that is exactly what we are doing.

We have 103 juried Fine Artists coming to Augusta with some absolutely incredible work. Our sponsors are showing up. Our entertainers are bringing HEAT to the stages, and I honestly don’t know how anyone is going to decide where to go first.

My recommendation?

Don’t.

Wander.

That is part of the fun.

Hear something coming from a stage? Go see what it is. See a piece of art that makes you stop walking? Go meet the artist. Smell something coming from Global Village that makes you reconsider the lunch you already ate?

Baby, go get the plate.

Because we have 20 countries represented in Global Village this year.

And listen.

I got a preview plate from Ghana.

I was FLOORED.

If that plate was any indication of what is about to happen at this Festival, I am telling you right now to come with an empty belly and a strategy.

You can eat around the world without leaving Augusta.

Wear stretchy pants. I am not judging you.

BEFORE THE FESTIVAL, I AM ESCAPING

As I write this, I am also preparing to take a very short pre-Festival reset for my granddaughter’s 11th birthday.

We’re cruising on Royal Caribbean.

Because WHY NOT?

I love my team. I love the Festival. I love Augusta.

And I also know when Denise needs to get on a boat for a minute.

Because when this Festival is over, somebody just needs to hand me a cape.

We have navigated two Festival footprint changes and in about a year we will be walking directly into a third.

That is silly business.

Yet, the work has to be done.

And my team has DONE THE WORK.

There are maps. There are measurements. There are stages. There are tents. There are artists. There are countries. There are sponsors. There are generators. There are meetings about meetings that were created because of other meetings. At some point, I am fairly certain I became an amateur civil engineer.

But watching all those pieces finally begin to come together?

Worth it.

NOW, I WANT TO ASK YOU FOR SOMETHING

When you come out and experience Arts in the Heart this year, I want you to look around for a moment.

Not just at the art.

Not just at the stages.

Not just at that plate you are carrying from Global Village.

Look at the whole thing.

Consider what it takes to create that kind of magic for a community.

Then I want you to consider joining the Greater Augusta Arts Council.

Yes, I am asking.

Because membership doesn’t simply support a Festival. It supports the organization that makes the Festival possible year after year. And that distinction matters.

Recently, I had an opportunity to speak at West Lake Country Club with our Board Treasurer about what the Greater Augusta Arts Council actually does beyond the big event most people know us for. And I realized something.

Arts in the Heart has become so large and so recognizable that sometimes the Festival becomes our entire identity in people’s minds.

We love that Arts in the Heart belongs so deeply to Augusta.

But the Greater Augusta Arts Council is much more than one incredible weekend in September.

SO, WHAT DOES THE ARTS COUNCIL ACTUALLY DO?

We advocate for artists.

We connect creatives with opportunities.

We create spaces for artists to exhibit, perform, teach, sell and grow.

We help connect the community to creativity.

We support public art and work that makes Augusta more beautiful, interesting and culturally vibrant.

We create programming and partnerships.

We help bring resources and opportunities into the creative community.

We advocate for an arts ecosystem where artists are not simply invited to make things beautiful, but are recognized as professionals whose work has value.

And yes, we produce Arts in the Heart of Augusta.

But the Festival is one very large, very visible expression of a much bigger mission.

When people attend arts events, buy artwork, eat in restaurants, stay in hotels, shop, park, explore downtown and spend money while experiencing our creative community, the arts create economic activity.

Creativity moves money.

Creativity builds community.

Creativity helps determine whether people see Augusta as simply somewhere they live or as a place they are proud to call home.

We are working toward more opportunities for the people who choose to create here.

But we cannot do that work without the community choosing to invest in it too.

So when you join the Arts Council, you are not just joining an organization.

You are helping us keep building the infrastructure that allows creativity to live here.

Tap in.

We need you.

NOW, ABOUT THOSE FESTIVAL BADGES…

Because I have heard y’all.

We asked what might keep you from coming to the new Festival Grounds.

And then we went to work.

You needed transportation?
Shuttle. Obtained.

You wanted another fun transportation option?
Pedal Pub. Done.

What about the grass?
Scheduled.

Ants?
Treated.

Could you make September in Georgia slightly cooler?
Done.*

Please direct all meteorological complaints to the appropriate department. I have exceeded my authority.

New countries?
Done.

Could we wave a magic wand over the whole Fairgrounds and turn it into Arts in the Heart?

Yep.

We found one.

So now I have a question for you.

What are you waiting for?

Get your Festival badge.

Bring your people.

Come hungry.

Come ready to buy some art.

Come ready to discover somebody you have never heard perform before.

Come ready to dance.

Come ready to experience 20 cultures without pulling out your passport.

And when you walk through those gates, take a good look around.

Because what you are seeing didn’t just happen.

Artists built it.

Volunteers built it.

Sponsors helped build it.

Countries built it.

Performers built it.

Our team built it.

And this community keeps it alive.

September 18–20, 2026.

Meet me at the Festival Grounds.

And somebody please remind me where I put my cape.

GET YOUR FESTIVAL BADGES HERE

Annnnnnnd THEN….Talk Artsy to ME!