11th Annual Bethesda Row Arts Festival is free to the public
Saturday, October 18th from 11am – 6pm
Sunday, October 19th from 11am – 5pm

The outdoor event is held rain or shine on Bethesda Row located on Woodmont and Bethesda Avenues, and Elm Street, east of Arlington Road. The festival is in easy walking distance from the Bethesda Metro station and 15 minutes from downtown Metrorail stops. Numerous free parking garages (49 and 57) are conveniently located around the site. Click here for directions or more information, or you can join our mailing list to receive event updates.

About Each October, the streets of Bethesda Row are transformed into an outdoor art gallery of spectacular fine arts and crafts. More than 200,000 people have enjoyed the Bethesda Row Arts Festival in the heart of Bethesda’s designated Arts & Entertainment District since it began in 1997. This year many of the world's finest arts and crafts will be presented.

The Festival, underwritten by Federal Realty Investment Trust, features the work of 180 leading artists and crafters from the Mid-Atlantic and around the country. On display will be the finest in: ceramics, drawings, fabrics, glass, graphics, jewelry, metalwork, paintings, pastels, photography, printmaking, sculpture, wood and mixed media.

The Festival has been recognized as one of the top 200 fine art shows in the United States by Sunshine Artist magazine, and the event will benefit the NIH Children's Charities.

Event & Community Activities The Arts Festival offers an Art Sale benefitting the NIH Children’s Charities, a Poster Sale, artist demonstration tent, children’s art activities, live acoustic stage performances, street performers, and high-quality outdoor food vendors.

The Arts Festival will also continue its commitment to the Arts through the Bethesda Row Arts Festival Scholarship. In 2008, the Festival will award a scholarship to an Artist pursuing a Master of Art in Teaching degree from the Corcoran School of Art + Design.

The Bethesda Row Arts Festival raises funds and awareness for the NIH Children’s Charities, which include The Children's Inn, Camp Fantastic/Special Love, Inc., and Friends of the Clinical Center. These three wonderful organizations are instrumental in providing much needed support for young patients and their families. The Festival will continue its support of the community with proceeds from the Art Sale, Poster Sale, Children’s Activities and Sponsorship funds, benefitting NIH Children’s Charities.

Bethesda Row is a sensory delight. A popular dining and gathering place, Bethesda Row covers four city blocks and features more than 50 fine shops, upscale galleries, unique restaurants, and an eight-screen movie theater. Low-rise retail and office buildings create a very pleasing, human-scale, town-center feel. The architecture is eclectic, ranging from art deco to southwest to postmodern in style.

Attractive cobblestone sidewalks, wooden and wrought-iron benches, trees and shrubbery round out the welcoming atmosphere of Bethesda Row, the recipient of three prestigious awards in 2002 - an Urban Land Institute Award for Excellence, a Congress for New Urbanism Charter Award and a Washington Smart Growth Alliance Recognition Award.

Bethesda Row is owned and managed by Federal Realty Investment Trust, a Rockville, Maryland based equity real estate investment trust (REIT). An industry leader for more than 40 years, Federal Realty specializes in the ownership, management, development and re-development of shopping centers and retail properties across the country. Shares of Federal Realty are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol: FRT