The MMFA Invites the Community to “Make Your Mark” During a Weekend of New Exhibitions, Alabama Artists, and Fall Fest

MONTGOMERY, AL, September 4, 2026 - The Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts invites the community to Make Your Mark during three days celebrating creativity, craftsmanship, labor, and the people whose work shapes culture, beginning Thursday, September 17, and continuing through Saturday, September 19.

Participants will create sidewalk works of art on Thursday, September 17 at Chalk Walk. The three-day celebration continues Friday, September 18, from 5 to 7 PM with the America250: The American Worker and Artist Market Opening Celebration, a free public reception welcoming a new season of exhibitions centered on human creativity, independence, labor, and the generations of people whose skill and imagination have helped build and connect communities.

Guests can explore the new exhibitions, enjoy live music and bites from Jennie Weller Catering, and get an early preview of the Artist Market before Saturday's full festival begins.

On Saturday, September 19, from 10 AM to 4 PM, the celebration expands throughout the Museum and Sculpture Garden with Fall Fest 2026: Make Your Mark, featuring an Artist Market of Alabama makers, live performances, hands-on artmaking, artist demonstrations, family activities, food, and community partners. Standard Deluxe, the Waverly, Alabama-based design and screen-printing studio, will serve as the featured artist for Fall Fest 2026.

America250: The American Worker

At the center of the new exhibition season is America250: The American Worker, on view September 12 through November 22, 2026, in the Atrium and Blackmon Gallery. The final exhibition in the Museum's America250 series explores the history of labor in the United States and the many ways work has defined, sustained, and challenged American life.

Drawn from the Museum's permanent collection, The American Worker expands the idea of labor beyond physically demanding work to include mental, creative, and intellectual effort. Artists, poets, musicians, writers, tradespeople, agricultural workers, and others all contribute to the broader story of American labor and cultural identity.

The exhibition also considers the unequal history of labor in the United States, including the experiences of enslaved people, indentured laborers, and child workers, while tracing the changing opportunities and conditions created by industrialization, education, training, and federal labor protections.

Alongside The American Worker, the Friday evening celebration introduces additional exhibitions including the Kent Bicentennial Portfolio and Workers Over Time, creating a broader look at creativity, work, and American identity across generations.

"The Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts is rich with images of Americans at work, whether in fields, offices, train stations, restaurants, or artists' studios. On the same night we celebrate the opening of The American Worker, Artist Market will begin, featuring the work of artists from our region. We tend to refer to lasting 'works' of art. But the truth is, the labors of many imaginations make a day like Saturday possible. Fall Fest is a fleeting masterpiece," said Alice Novak, Interim Director of the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts.

Thursday: Chalk Walk 2026

The celebration begins Thursday, September 17, from 8 AM to 2 PM with Chalk Walk 2026, a free outdoor art event inviting artists of all ages to make their mark on the Museum's sidewalks. Adults, teachers, and students are invited to participate in the return of this community tradition, extending this year's Make Your Mark theme into the days leading up to Fall Fest.

Friday: America250 and Fall Fest Opening Celebration

Friday evening's free reception gives visitors an opportunity to experience the Museum's new exhibition season while enjoying live music, bites from Jennie Weller Catering, and an advance look at artists participating in Saturday's Artist Market.

The evening connects the stories of American labor and creative work presented in the galleries with the artists, makers, performers, and cultural organizations who will gather at the Museum for Fall Fest the following day.

The Museum commissioned Alabama's poet laureate Dr. Jacqueline Allen Trimble to compose a poetic reflection on the American Worker. She will read it publicly for the first time that evening.

Saturday: Fall Fest 2026 - Make Your Mark

On Saturday, the celebration moves throughout the Museum and Sculpture Garden for a full day of creativity and community.

Fall Fest celebrates Montgomery and Alabama's vibrant creative culture, bringing together artists and organizations from across the region. The free event includes an Artist Market with more than 30 vendors, live performances, art demonstrations, hands-on artmaking, food trucks, tastings, and activities for visitors of all ages. All artists participating in the Artist Market live and create in Alabama.

Featured artists for this year's festival include Standard Deluxe, the Waverly, Alabama-based design and silkscreen print shop, and local artist and Let 'Em Speak founder Mara Jay.

Jamillah Bell will provide live music during Friday night's opening and serve as the Open Mic MC on Saturday.

Auditorium programming will include a Legacy Cypher with Mara Jay, a presentation by Dr. Jacqueline Allen Trimble, and Vision + Imprint: The Art of Standard Deluxe.

Visitors can also watch artists at work during demonstrations including screen printing with Standard Deluxe and 3D printing with Windham Graves.

Artist Market

The Fall Fest Artist Market gives visitors an opportunity to meet Alabama artists and purchase original work directly from the people who create it.

More than 30 vendors will offer works across a range of media and price points. Artwork may include painting, drawing, mixed media, photography, digital art, fabric, clothing and accessories, jewelry, sculpture, ceramics, glass, and other handcrafted objects.

Artmaking and Family Activities

Throughout the Sculpture Garden, visitors can make their own mark through projects including bedazzled bandanas, button rings, button pins, fabric marker art, foil tattoos, iron-on patches, and window clings.

Fall Fest will also feature free Abrakadoodle Workshops for Kids for children ages 5 through 12. Led by Abrakadoodle instructors, each class gives young artists an opportunity to create a project to take home and share with their families.

Advance registration is required for Abrakadoodle workshops. Classes are limited to 15 participants and are offered through the Art Bridges Foundation Access for All program.

Community Partners, Food, and More.

Fall Fest brings together cultural organizations, creative businesses, and community partners from across Montgomery and the region.

Confirmed partners and vendors include Abrakadoodle, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Capri Theatre, Chrietzberg Photography, Graves Art and Design, LLC, Montgomery City-County Public Library, Montgomery Pride United, and The Armory Learning Arts Center.

Food and drink vendors currently scheduled include Crêpe Magic, El Campesino, Funky Forte, The Sweet Spot, and Woody's Italian Ice.

Fall Fest will take place rain or shine. In the event of inclement weather, activities will move indoors.

Exhibitions

America250: The American Worker
September 12 through November 22, 2026
Atrium and Blackmon Gallery

Kent Bicentennial Portfolio
September 12 through November 29, 2026
Weil Gallery

Workers Over Time
September 12 through November 22, 2026
Weil Graphic Arts Study Center

Community Reflection: We the People
September 12 through November 22, 2026
Artworks Community Gallery

General Information

WHERE:
Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts
Wynton M. Blount Cultural Park
One Museum Drive
Montgomery, AL 36117

ADMISSION:
Free admission and free parking.

MEDIA CONTACT
Chris Hardy | 205.276.6587 | [email protected]