ClydeFEST 2026: Pausing for this year
ClydeFEST has been an annual joy and creative catalyst in our community for 24 years and counting. With the passing of our beloved friend Clyde Jones, we are taking a pause for 2026. While we will miss the creative buzz, artistic energy, and community joy that this event brings, we are enthusiastically looking forward to ClydeFEST 2027, gathering together around the arts with you all to celebrate Clyde’s legacy.
In the absence of ClydeFEST 2026, here are some ways you can celebrate Clyde’s life and legacy this spring:
- Visit the Fearrington Folk Art show on February 21 or 22 to see and purchase work from Clyde’s folk art peers from around the country. This year’s show is dedicated to Clyde Jones.
- Go to Capt. John’s Dockside Lounge. There’s no one in the area that has a larger collection of Clyde’s work.
- Pay a visit to the Clyde Jones Salisbury street mural. It’s the largest example of Clyde-inspired community-based art anywhere, and it got a refresh in 2025, so it’s looking spiffy!
And while Clyde’s front yard in Bynum is not the glittery Critter wonderland it used to be, you can see plenty of photos of Clyde’s Critters all over the internet, including in these spots:
- Documentary Preview by Khang Mai
- Short Documentary
- Documentary by James Cox
- 2008 ClydeFEST Documentary
- A short book by Richard Semelka: Clyde Jones: Penguins, Giraffes, and Other Critters, His Joyous Vision
Remember how great it felt to play outside when you were a kid? Running for running’s sake? Hula-hooping, playing games, blowing bubbles, creating new worlds? ClydeFEST, our beloved kids’ folk arts festival, has been bringing that feeling back for families in Chatham for more than 2 decades.
From face painting, bubbles, and hula hoops to arts projects and good old-fashioned carnival games, ClydeFEST has an activity for all ages. Offering a full-day of screen-free fun, the festival is a place for kids to get messy in Critterville, painting their very own Clyde critter cut-out, then visiting all the community booths on the field to create a multitude of masterpieces. And we clean up all the mess!
Mingled in with all the artful booths, old-fashioned handmade carnival games like Penguin Hoops Ring Toss, Fishing Hole, and Critter Putt mini-golf dot the field to challenge little ones.
In addition to all the games and art-making, musicians, dancers, and performers of all kinds entertain crowds throughout the day, even allowing opportunities for festival-goers to join in the fun. And did we mention the food? Food trucks always line the festival with offerings from famous BLTs and tacos to ice cream, boba tea and cake, and everything in between!
A couple of years ago, ClydeFEST found a new home at the Chatham Ag Center, making the festival even more accessible to residents of Chatham and the surrounding communities. Since then, the festival has welcomed more than 2,500 kids of all ages each year.
