Napa Lighted Art Festival 2026 - Call for Art

The Napa Lighted Art Festival is a celebration of creative arts, technology, and lights. Currently in its 8th edition, the festival is a free, open-air event held in downtown Napa that supports innovative techniques using light and light technologies as a growing art medium. For the 2026 Festival, the curatorial team will select approximately 10 installations to receive a stipend between $2,000-$10,000. Both individual artists and artist groups are encouraged to apply. The festival runs January 16-February 15, 2026, with hours Sunday-Thursday 6:00-9:00 p.m. and Friday-Saturday 6:00-10:00 p.m. at various sites and buildings throughout the Napa Downtown Area.

Light itself must be the actual artwork, with light essential to the concept. Light used only to illuminate artwork is not acceptable. Artwork could include light sculptures, light art, video art, 3D video mapping projections, LED, fiber optics, custom gobo designs, interactive works, lasers, and other innovative uses of light technology. Both new and existing works are welcome if they meet festival themes and criteria. Artists should consider the outdoor environment and audience when proposing projects. All artwork must be operational for all festival hours each night.

Submissions must include 1-20 images, and may include up to 6 audio files and 6 video files. Digital artwork must be uploaded by December 8, 2025. Physical artwork must arrive and be installed by January 10, 2026, and deinstalled by February 28, 2026. All sculptures and physical artwork must be powered continuously or have timers to self-turn-on by 6:00 p.m. each evening. Construction must be rigid and durable to withstand winter weather conditions; stamped engineering drawings may be required for some structures. Artists maintain copyright and ownership of their work. The festival reserves the right to reproduce images for publicity and marketing purposes, and may re-exhibit selected digital artwork in future years. Submission deadline: September 1, 2025.