Arts fest director Hillary Gilson said that’s a 10% dip in attendance.
“It's due to three main factors. First off is issues with our new locals night registration process. Second was I-80 traffic impacts on both Friday and Saturday,” she said during a presentation at an October Park City Council meeting. “And then third is an intentional effort to decrease the amount of comped VIP and weekender passes that were given out throughout the or for the festival, so that we could ensure a top quality VIP experience.”
The 56th edition of the festival began the same day as the inaugural Park City Jewish Festival and the same weekend as the Summit County Fair.
Construction on Interstate 80 also could have accounted for higher traffic.
Despite lower visitor numbers, Gilson said the Utah State Tax Commission reports vendors sold more than $2.2 million in artwork.
“Which is an increase of over $100,000 from 2024 these combined art and food vendor sales at the festival generated over $215,000 in direct tax revenue for the state of Utah,” she said.
The Kimball Arts Festival and Kimball Art Center do not receive money from artist sales. Instead they profit from the festival through ticket sales, event sponsorships and rented booth space.
The 2026 edition of the Kimball Arts Festival is scheduled for Aug. 7 through Aug 9 in Park City.
The Kimball Art Center is a financial supporter of KPCW.
