Sunday August 2, 2026

Welcome to the 2026 BUMP Festival!

The city is alive, gesticulating toward its own identity. 

In 2026, we find ourselves at a moment of cultural possibility, asking what kind of place Calgary might become if we allowed ourselves to imagine beyond the inherited boundaries of the present. How else can we grow? How else might we architect the idea of this city: generative, strange, and shaped by artists who are unapologetically ambitious? This is how we began the year. These are the questions that carried us from Beltline Urban Mural Projects (BUMP) into the BUMP Festival Arts Society, a charitable organization dedicated to building a city through public art, artistic exchange, and cultural experimentation.

We believe Calgary is worth investing in, worth challenging, worth expanding, and worth imagining otherwise.

Selected from more than 1,000 applications, this year’s artists include local innovators, nationally celebrated practitioners, and international voices working across murals, sculpture, installation, sound, performance, and research. Their practices challenge convention and transform the city into a place of curiosity and possibility.

Throughout August and beyond, the festival unfolds across Calgary through new murals, our inaugural Public Sculpture Program, and free mural tours that invite audiences into the stories behind the city’s evolving visual landscape.

At the heart of the festival is the BUMP Urban Art Conference, our ideas hub, bringing together more than 40 cultural thinkers from across Canada and around the world to explore the future of public art and civic life.

We close with CALDERA, a free outdoor rave featuring national and international DJs making their Western Canadian debuts, transforming the city one final time through sound, light, and collective celebration.

What’s Happening This Week?

FROM HELIPAD TO PUBLIC SPACE

We kick off the 2026 BUMP Festival with the unveiling of one of our largest murals of the year.

Created by Montreal artist Marc-Olivier Lamothe in partnership with the City of Calgary, a former helipad has been transformed into a vibrant new public space alongside three new community basketball half courts.

Join us for opening remarks, meet the artist, take part in a community workshop led by Activate YYC, and connect with our partners Calgary Surge, CJSW, Activate YYC, and the National Music Centre. Light refreshments will be available while supplies last.

HELIPAD HOOPS: Ground Mural & Basketball Court Opening
Thursday, August 6 | 10 AM–1 PM
Eau Claire Park

MOVIES UNDER THE STARS

We’ll be under the stars for our annual outdoor film screening. This year, in partnership with Quickdraw Animation Society and the Beltline Neighbourhoods Association, we’re presenting Michael Arias’ acclaimed animated cult classic Tekkonkinkreet, preceded by Stranger Danger, a short film by Calgary animator Jhemarie David.

Bring a blanket or lawn chair, settle in with the Calgary skyline as your backdrop, and experience one of animation’s most visually stunning films. Popcorn and non-alcoholic drinks will be available for purchase, or bring your own snacks.

And don’t forget the bug spray!

Movies with a View: Tekkonkinkreet
Thursday, August 6 | 9:30 PM
High Park Rooftop (340 10 Ave SW)

The Conference Is Filling Up — RSVP Now!

Over three days of keynote talks, panels, and conversations, you’ll hear from an extraordinary lineup of guests including Faye HeavyShield, Sook-Yin Lee, Marigold Santos, Ken Lum, Cadence Weapon, Said Dokins, and many more.

From conversations about housing affordability, extraction, and the future of urban life to a provocative panel on AI, authorship, and what it means to create in an increasingly automated world, the conference brings together local, national, and international voices to examine the forces reshaping culture — and where public art is headed next.

You can read our 2026 Festival Program Guide here.