Children’s Arts Festival
Welcome to the Children’s Arts Festival!
You are cordially invited to the 26th annual Children’s Arts Festival opening reception celebration! This event proudly launches Youth Art Month in the Southeast Missouri region and has become one of the area’s most anticipated celebrations of student creativity.
This year’s festival will showcase visual artwork from more than 250 students and 20+ teachers representing schools across the SEMO region. In addition to the visual arts exhibition, guests will enjoy live performances by the Cape Central High School and Cape Central Middle School Guitar Ensembles, under the direction of Ben Belanger, as well as performances from Rock the Heartland participants, featuring headliners and competition winners, King Pink!
As part of our ongoing commitment to supporting arts education, all “Artworks of Distinction” selected at the festival will be delivered to the offices of our state senators and representatives in Jefferson City for display during Fine Arts Education Day in April. This tradition provides student artists with an extraordinary opportunity for statewide recognition and highlights the importance of arts programs in K–12 education. More information will be shared after the Children’s Arts Festival.
DATE & TIME
Friday, February 6th, 2026
4:00 - 8:00 PM
Awards Ceremony at 6:00 PM
Exhibition on display from February 6th - February 28th
LOCATION
Arts Council of Southeast Missouri
426 Broadway St
Artwork will be hung in the Arts Council gallery. Refreshments, performances, and the awards ceremony will take place in Scout Hall.
Welcome Teachers!
Dear Art Educators of Southeast Missouri,
The staff and board of the Arts Council are thrilled to announce the return of our beloved Children’s Arts Festival Exhibition to our main gallery at 426 Broadway in the historic Scout Hall building. This year’s exhibition will be on display for the full month of February, which is Youth Art Month in the SEMO region, giving the community plenty of time to celebrate the creativity of your students.
All teachers are invited to submit up to five works per grade level (one 3-D), along with one poem. While a theme is never required, this year’s suggested theme is Art is a Superpower — a timely focus that aligns beautifully with the Missouri Art Educators Association (MAEA) Conference coming to Cape Girardeau in March 2026.
To make participation easier, we’ve extended the turn-in deadline to Saturday, December 20th, though the Intent to Participate form must still be completed by October. Full guidelines for submissions can be found in the 2026 Dates to Know document.
As always, student work will travel with us to Jefferson City for Fine Arts Education Day in April, where we proudly share their talent with our state senators and representatives. Once the exhibition concludes, with the exception of Best in Show winners, we will hand deliver or mail artwork back to your schools so students can receive their pieces before the school year ends.
If there are any ways we can make the process easier for you, or if you have suggestions to improve the exhibition experience, we would love to hear them—we are always eager to collaborate with our educators.
Thank you for inspiring and guiding the next generation of artists. We can’t wait to see what your students create this year!
With appreciation,
The Staff and Board of the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri
Intent to Participate:
So you’re ready to jump in? All we need to know, by October, is whether you plan to be a part of the February exhibition. You can continue to collect and curate student artwork until the end of the semester. If there are any outstanding questions we have not answered or you would like to give us feedback prior to the show, we will host a Zoom meeting at the end of September, so that you feel ready and able to take part in this wonderful event. Be sure to read the teacher information packet for all details about important dates, submission requirements, Fine Arts Education Day, and more.
Still have questions? Give us a call at 573-334-9233!
Dates to Know:
Before October 4, 2025: - “Intent to Participate” form due. Please go to https://2026caf.paperform.co to sign up for the 2026 show. This form is required for administrative purposes, and must be submitted by the due date for work to be accepted into the show. This form will assist us contacting state senators and representatives from your district to participate in Fine Arts Education Day in April.
December 20, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. - Deadline for physical delivery of the maximum five pieces of artwork (one 3D per grade level) and one poem from each participating grade level, as submitted above, to the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri, located at 426 Broadway in Cape Girardeau. This drop off date is essential to the jurying process, which determines excellence at each grade level, and allows us enough time to photograph all work for the annual CAF booklets provided by PDQ Printing.
*** PLEASE NOTE: IF THESE REQUIREMENTS ARE NOT MET, STUDENT WORK CANNOT BE ACCEPTED INTO THE SHOW.
February 6, 2026 from 4:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. - Opening Reception for the 26th Annual Children’s Arts Festival, hosted by the Arts Council at the main gallery at 426 Broadway in Cape Girardeau. We invite participating students, parents, and teachers to attend the First Friday reception from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. A light reception will be provided, as will many photo opportunities. The show will remain on display for the month of February during our official Youth Art Month.
April 17, 2026 - All work will be returned to teachers at school or via USPS. In order to make this as easy as possible to participate, our Art Ed committee will hand-deliver artwork to your school, or will mail work to you after Fine Arts Education Day on Wednesday, April 8th in Jefferson City.
Thank You to Our 2026 Sponsors
Become a Children’s Arts Festival Sponsor
I hope this message finds you well. I am inviting you to partner with us as a sponsor of the 26th Annual Children’s Arts Festival, taking place at Scout Hall on Friday, February 6th, 2026, from 4:00–8:00 p.m. This event proudly launches Youth Art Month in the Southeast Missouri region and has become one of the area’s most anticipated celebrations of student creativity.
This year’s festival will showcase visual artwork from more than 250 students and 20+ teachers representing schools across the SEMO region. In addition to the visual arts exhibition, guests will enjoy live performances by the Cape Central High School and Cape Central Middle School Guitar Ensembles, under the direction of Ben Belanger, as well as performances from Rock the Heartland participants, featuring headliners and competition winners, King Pink.
As part of our ongoing commitment to supporting arts education, all “Artworks of Distinction” selected at the festival will be delivered to the offices of our state senators and representatives in Jefferson City for display during Fine Arts Education Day in April. This tradition provides student artists with an extraordinary opportunity for statewide recognition and highlights the importance of arts programs in K–12 education.
We would be honored to have you join us as a sponsor. Sponsors are welcome to host a booth or share informational materials at the event, providing a chance to meet thousands of students, families, educators, and community members who attend each year. Your support would directly contribute to the success of the festival and help sustain meaningful arts opportunities for students throughout the region.
I would be happy to provide more information on sponsorship tiers, benefits, or any additional information you may need. Thank you for considering this partnership, and for your commitment to our local youth and arts community.
All the Best,
Kelly Downes
Director, Arts Council of Southeast Missouri
2025 Recap
2025 marked the 25th anniversary of the beloved Children’s Arts Festival. We celebrated the artistic contributions of educators and students across the SEMO region to commence Youth Art Month, which takes place every February. This year’s two-day event was a blast!
To celebrate such a special anniversary, this year’s exhibition had a Beatles theme- think Yellow Submarine, pop art, and funky 60s vibes. In addition to over 200 works of visual art from regional schools, students performed throughout Friday night to incorporate other sectors of the arts. The Music Academy Youth Orchestra, directed by Andrew Hacay, Cape Central Guitar Ensemble, under the direction of Ben Belanger, Jesse Steele of Shivelbines, and Fingerprint Urban Dance Studio, under the direction of Michael “Crank” Curry, performed for the exhibition’s opening reception.
Everyone was invited back on Saturday to continue to celebrate! The Abbey Road Warriors, a Beatles tribute band from St. Louis, joined us for an afternoon show. This truly was a family friendly concert with many kids in attendance. They danced the afternoon away and experience music of a monumental band from before their time.
The Fountain Street Quartet, under the direction of Dr. Sophia Han, opened the second show of the night. The four SEMO Strings students performed familiar hits by David Bowie, The Beatles, and more! The Abbey Road Warriors then took the stage once again for a new group of guests.
The weekend celebration also featured a “Magical Mystery Tour” scavenger hunt featuring 25 local businesses! These businesses either had their windows painted on-theme by professional artists or housed a collaborative canvas art piece. This city-wide celebration was meant to inspire students, show them that creativity is the lifelong pursuit of joy and curiosity, and to encourage them to support their local community.
Thank You to Our 2025 Sponsors
Fine Arts Education Day 2025
2025 Fine Arts Education Day was a blast! We met with students and educators from our Children's Arts Festival to present award winning artwork to Senators and Representatives in Jefferson City.
Please help us congratulate these students on this accomplishment! We are so proud of them, as well as all of the Children's Arts Festival artists. Our future is in good hands if young artists continue to create as well as advocate for the arts.
