It’s the 27th anniversary of the Philadelphia Open Studio Tours (POST) and to celebrate, its creative community is planning an artistic journey you won’t want to miss.
POST is a program of The Center for Emerging Visual Artists (CFEVA), and it’s Philly’s largest self-guided tour. In 2026, this citywide celebration will feature detailed experiences, plus, hands-on workshops, gallery exhibitions, live demonstrations, artist talks, receptions and special events.
It’s been a tradition every fall season since 1999, and 2026 is similar to its predecessors with a behind-the-scenes look into the creative processes of local artists spanning visual media in painting, drawing, ceramics, mixed media, photography, metalworking and much more.
This year in total will boast over 150 artist studios and creative workspaces, covering more than 26 Philly neighborhoods. The first weekend (Oct. 10 and 11) will focus on studios west of Broad Street, while the following weekend (Oct. 17 and 18), will tackle the studios east of the cutoff.
The West edition will feature stops in Center City West, Chestnut Hill, Mount Airy, East Falls, Roxborough, Manayunk, Fairmount, Francisville, Germantown and West Philadelphia. The East iteration, on the other hand, will include stops in Center City East, South Kensington, Fishtown, North Philadelphia, Northern Liberties, Old City, Port Richmond, Northeast Philly, Queen Village, Bella Vista and throughout South Philadelphia.
Each studio will be open from noon to 6 p.m. on its designated days, and participants can use the online and print maps provided by CFEVA to guide their tours. Each stop on POST will feature red balloons and branded posters outside to help with distinction. While there, Philadelphians can check out hands-on workshops, gallery exhibitions, live demonstrations, artist talks, special receptions, and more.
POST 2026 also hosts some stand-alone events. The season officially kicks off Thursday, Oct. 8, from 5 to 7 p.m. at CFEVA at the Science Center with an opening celebration for the CFEVA Fellowship Exhibition. On view from Sept. 25 through Dec. 4, this showcase offers an early look at the artists and ideas shaping this year’s POST season.
This year’s Open Studio Tours will also feature an event from Artists for Artists Global with their 2026 Scholarship Winners at two community-based locations during the Studio Tours: On the West of Broad weekend, visitors can head to RHD’s United Peers Program, while the program’s East of Broad presentation will take place at Temple University’s TechOwl Community Space. Together, these particular exhibitions highlight the “breadth of emerging and established artistic voices supported through the program while bringing POST beyond conventional gallery settings.”
There are also a few other opportunities to encounter art in unexpected places over the two weekends: At Artbox @ Lincoln Square, visitors can see ‘CFEVA Presents: David Bogus, Optimist Luggage Series’, an exhibition that will remain on view through February 2027. CFEVA’s presence is also extending into Center City with an exhibition at the Sonesta Philadelphia Downtown Rittenhouse Square, which will remain on view through May 2027. The following weekend, locals can check out ‘PROXIMITY,’ curated by CFEVA Fellow Sammy Rivera, which will be on view through Nov. 1 at Cherry Street Pier.
As a program of the Center for Emerging Visual Artists, POST creates promotional opportunities for Philadelphia artists while increasing awareness of the quality and quantity of visual art in our city, a release notes. Today, CFEVA’s programming serves more than 400,000 artists and audience members annually.
To find out more on this year’s Studio Tours and other information regarding CFEVA, visit cfeva.org
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Keywords
Philadelphia Open Studio Tours,
Philly,
art,
The Center for Emerging Visual Artists,
POST