Once a year, the streets around Wayne State are transformed into a colorful, weekend-long celebration
of culture. The Detroit Festival of the Arts was founded in 1987 to attract new visitors to the University Cultural Center and present international artists to metro-area audiences. Nineteen years later, it brings an estimated 250,000 people of all ages to Midtown Detroit.

Musicians, painters, poets and dancers take to the streets on and around the Wayne State campus and the University Cultural Center for three days of revelry. The event includes a juried artist’s market, a literary arts festival, street performers and other performers from around the world appearing on 10 stages.

“Not only does the festival provide an all-too-rare opportunity for metro families to enjoy the arts and experience the cultural richness and diversity of the city of Detroit, it also showcases area museums and institutions to thousands of people who may not visit them otherwise,” says Maureen Riley, special events director, University Cultural Center Association, which produces the event with Wayne State.