Deep Ellum Arts Festival

Maybe I am biased, since the crafts and festivals in San Francisco actually sell things you want to buy, but this wasn't that.It was lots of junky crafts and a few (non-crowded) food stalls - All packed together in an alley for only about 4 blocks.I went with 2 friends, the only thing one of us actually purchased was a sticker.I suppose the good news is that parking was pretty easy and it is only 1x per year.Hard pass.

Great venue, great weather, great people watching and some great artist out there. Not many mask wearer's if that is a concern but we got there early so it was not a problem. Hope things continue to get better because we miss these type of events. Great job Deep Ellum

WHAT HAPPENED!? This festival used to be so great. Tons of artist, vendors, food & entertainment. THIS YEAR was tiny. Most of the art looked like cheesy 80's or cheap. Where were the food & drink tents? The entertainment was THE WORST. Some creepy chick singer doing bad karaoke, a chick doing really bad/boring wire dance thing and some gypsies almost kinda sorta dancing. A snooze-fest.

The Deep Ellum Art Festival is an exuberayting 3-days festival filled with art and music. Celebrating its 25th year this year. My, how big it's grown!Of art, remembering when I first called this an amazing underground art festival years back. Now, not just local, but commercial art vendors from all over is here now, harder it is to find the diamonds in the rough amongst the purified art displays and vendors that I can also find at all the other art fairs!Of music, WOW, it's really something to behold. Different genres, different acts on what I counted of three large stages, and numerous scheduled street musicians along the blocks from 11am -11pm daily!And, of its location, fantastic it is for this event. While there's of course the standard food vendors at the festival, wonderful it is to venture out and try one of the eccentric local eateries in Deep Ellum!CHEERS!

Great event went early masked many not masked artists selling their wears and music on every corner. Something for everyone and able to try local deep ellum restaurants.

This was my second year in a row coming and it was so much bigger then last year. Pretty awesome local bands on stage. It's cool to just walk around Deep Ellum checking out some stellar art work while drinking a cold beer and munching out on some awesome fair foods!

An eclectic mix of artists from all over the US (Iowa, Colorado, ATX, etc.) descended on the Deep Ellum neighborhood for a three day festival. The city closes the streets to car traffic, and the pedestrians fill every available space that's left. Vendor tents line both sides of the streets. Each intersection has food vendors, coupon booths, an ATM, porta-potties, and a stage with different bands and musical acts performing. Free street parking can be found if you go early; otherwise there were lots where you could pay for festival parking. We went on Sunday for the pet-friendly day. At the street intersections where the food vendors and tables and chairs could be found, there were also water dishes out for the dogs. We stopped at these water holes regularly and they always seemed filled with fresh water. At another intersection we found a food truck for dogs. Pawtastic Snacks was selling frozen yogurt for your pooch. Flavors included things like bacon and peanut butter. Unfortunately it was the only pet vendor we saw. There was an artist that would do a painting of your dog on canvas for several hundred dollars. I'm surprised there wasn't a caricaturist there. Great business opportunity for someone. At 11:00am, people with pets met at the Deep Ellum dog park to register for the dog parade. Some dressed up their mutts in costumes (Brittany Spears was spotted in her school girl uniform). The Pet Parade procession made its way down the vendor aisle around noon followed by the People Parade with marching band, small cart floats and dancers at 1:00pm. As the afternoon sun blazed down, the crowds got so thick it became difficult to navigate the walkway. We had to leave because our foster pup was overwhelmed by the masses. Thankfully we were able to retreat to the shaded Deep Ellum dog park where the pup could relieve herself and relax. Although most of the artists were selling out of my price range, I thoroughly enjoyed visiting their temporary tent galleries during the festival.

Absolutely loved the festival! So many unique styles of art and different mediums represented. I really enjoyed interacting with the artists and finding out about their process and inspiration for their work. Felt safe and unhurried on Friday afternoon and managed to get into Pecan Lodge for BBQ for an early dinner.

It was a great day for a festival. Came here to enjoy looking at art and listening to the music and.....okay, just kidding. I came here to do that, but mainly to try the foods!Atmosphere - 5/5 - Great day, lots of diverse people and great little areas with art displays. Just a great time.Staff - 4/5 - Most just waited until you came to their booth and spoke to them first. Food - 4/5 - Carnival type Food.What we ordered:- BBQ Sandwich - Toffee Apple- Brat with Bacon and other itemsThoroughly enjoyed each one, but nothing amazing about them. It was nice that the cut the apple, which made it easier to eat.Overall, it was a great time, and will probably come back next year.

The 2016 Deep Ellum Arts Festival has come and gone. It was another great event; definitely bigger than previous years and perhaps even better. Once again the event was held on Main Street which was blocked off from Malcom X Blvd to Exposition. The weather cooperated this year and the temps were pleasant throughout the festival which ran from Friday through Sunday. I'm sure the vendors appreciated this as it gave them three days of optimal weather conditions to showcase their products. As in previous years, there were lots of vendors from all over the USA with a varying selection of items available for purchase. The items ranged from mattresses (yes, I recall seeing a booth for a mattress store) to all types of art pieces. One thing that was noticeably different this year is most of the vendors were from states other than Texas. In case you work up an appetite (or get thirsty) perusing the art booths, there are plenty of food and beverage booths as well. And by food I mean 'fair-type food such as corn dogs, turkey legs, funnel cakes, etc. While admission to the festival is free, food and drinks are available for purchase; most requiring coupons. The coupons were available for purchase once inside the festival area. I did not purchase any but was told the coupons were $1 each and only cash was accepted. There was food court area setup that contained restaurants local to the Deep Ellum area. In addition to all the booths there were several stages with nonstop live music acts playing throughout the entire festival. As always, the festival is open to everyone (including pets) there were no activities specifically geared towards young children and teenagers. Also keep in mind that Deep Ellum is an adult oriented area with bars, clubs, restaurants and galleries, etc. so expect to see a little of bit of everything. And in some cases one might see more than just a little bit. Lastly, if you live outside the local Deep Ellum area, I highly recommend using public transportation to get there. As to be expected for an event like this, parking can be a challenge. If you live the area, walking to the festival is your best choice. I always enjoy this festival (actually I wish there were more neighborhood festivals like this in Dallas) and I'm already looking forward to 2017. There is always a fun time to be had at the Deep Ellum Arts Festival.