Wyoming Folklife Festival
Experience Wyoming folk and traditional arts through demonstrations, performances, and community celebration at this free public festival in Cheyenne.
Experience Wyoming folk and traditional arts through demonstrations, performances, and celebration in Cheyenne.
Las Angelitas Unidas y Los Rayos del Sol
Celebrating Folk and Traditional Arts Across Wyoming
The Wyoming Folklife Festival is a free public event celebrating the folk and traditional arts practiced in communities across Wyoming. Hosted by the Wyoming Arts Council as part of Cheyenne’s broader Capital City Celebration commemorating America’s 250th anniversary, the festival features artist demonstrations, cultural traditions, and live performances highlighting the knowledge, skills, and creativity passed through generations.
2026 Festival Information
Saturday, July 4, 2026
Noon–4 p.m.
South Lawn of the Barrett Building
Wyoming State Museum
2301 Central Ave.
Cheyenne, Wyoming
The event is free and open to the public.
Visitors are encouraged to explore demonstrations throughout the afternoon and learn more about the artists, traditions, and communities represented at the festival.
Featured Artists and Demonstrations
The 2026 Wyoming Folklife Festival will feature artists and apprentices connected to the Wyoming Arts Council’s Folk & Traditional Arts Mentoring Project Grant program.
Featured demonstrations and traditions include:
- David Osmundsen (Buffalo) — Blacksmithing
- James Dewey (Casper) — Beadwork
- James Gullion (Jeffrey City) — Bit and Spur Making
- Joey Puettman (Sheridan) — Fly Rod Making
- John Blair (Greybull) — Saddlemaking and Leatherwork
- Justine Nelson-Graham (Weston) — Rawhide Braiding
- Reba Teran (Fort Washakie) — Beadwork and Shoshone Women’s Saddles
- Veronica Miller (Riverton) — Beadwork
- Misty Corlett (Kinnear) — Saddlemaking and Leatherwork
- Alyssa Martinez and Idalis Higginbottom (Cheyenne) — Trenza and Tocados (traditional braided hairpieces used in Ballet Folklórico)
Traditional dance performances will also take place on the main stage in front of the Wyoming State Capitol:
- Wind River Dancers — Powwow Dancing
- Las Angelitas Unidas y Los Rayos del Sol — Mexican Ballet Folklórico
Parking and Visitor Information
Public parking is available near the Barrett Building, including surrounding street parking, nearby parking lots, and public parking garages in downtown Cheyenne.
ADA parking is available on the north side of the Wyoming State Museum.
Additional information about parking, accessibility, and other Capital City Celebration events will be available through the Capital City Celebration website.
Keeping Tradition Catalog
The Wyoming Arts Council has published Keeping Tradition: Folk & Traditional Arts Mentoring Project Grants in Wyoming 2005–2025, a retrospective catalog celebrating the first 20 years of the Folk & Traditional Arts Mentoring Project Grant program.
The 72-page, full-color catalog includes:
- Artist spotlights
- Historical context
- Traditional art forms practiced across Wyoming
- A complete list of former grant recipients
Featured traditions include old-time fiddle, rawhide braiding, beadwork, regalia making, western saddlemaking, and more.
Request a Catalog
The catalog is available free of charge by request. Pre-orders may be submitted online using the button below. Catalogs will be mailed in the coming weeks.
About the Folk & Traditional Arts Mentoring Project Grant
The Wyoming Arts Council’s Folk & Traditional Arts Mentoring Project Grant supports mentor artists as they pass on traditional arts knowledge and skills to apprentices through hands-on instruction in their communities.
Since 2005, the program has supported artists and traditions from communities across Wyoming, helping preserve and celebrate cultural practices that continue to shape communities today.
