Music, art, food, and community come together for a free family weekend as Fiesta marks three quarters of a century at its new home on Rainey Street.
Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center, Austin — September 26-27, 2026
Austin’s oldest arts festival is turning 75, and it’s celebrating the milestone at a brand-new home. Fiesta, presented by Art City Austin, returns September 26-27 to the newly renovated Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center, located at 600 River Street in Austin on Rainey Street, bringing together music, art, food, and community in one free, family-friendly weekend.
Fiesta traces its roots back to 1950, when it began as a juried arts and crafts fair. Seventy-five years later, the festival has grown alongside the city itself while staying true to its original mission: celebrating local artists and the culture that shapes them. This year’s edition also marks the first Fiesta held inside the fully reopened ESB-MACC, which welcomed the public back in June 2026 after a multi-year renovation project that added new gathering spaces, expanded gallery space, and beautiful outdoor grounds along the Waterloo Greenway.
The ESB-MACC itself is dedicated to preserving and celebrating Mexican American, Indigenous, Chicano, and broader Latino cultural arts, offering programs year-round across visual art, theatre, dance, literature, music, and language. Fiesta represents one of the center’s signature annual events, alongside its September celebration of Mexican Independence Day. Event details are available at a3austin.org, and general center information can be found at austintexas.gov/macc
Families heading to the festival will find it centrally located just steps from Rainey Street and Lady Bird Lake, making it easy to turn the weekend into a broader downtown outing. As with the center’s other signature events, expect a lineup built around accessibility and inclusivity, with local artists, musicians, and cultural programming taking center stage across the two-day celebration.
Whether you’re a longtime Austin arts lover or introducing the kids to the city’s creative community for the first time, Fiesta’s 75th anniversary weekend is shaping up to be one of the standout free events of the fall. Mark the calendar for September 26 and 27, and come celebrate three quarters of a century of Austin creativity in its beautiful new home.
