APRIL 10 - 13, 2025

In 2025, this extraordinary folk-art celebration takes over Houston from April 10 to 13, with the main parade on April 12 (free access). Carl Lewis, 10-time Olympic Champion, is the 2025 Grand Marshal. Known worldwide as "Athlete of the Century," he is one of the greatest stars in track and field history. Start your Art Car experience on April 10 in Discovery Green at Art Car Parade Sneak Peek event. Follow the next day at the Legendary Art Car Ball at the Orange Show World Headquarters. On April 12, enjoy the full force of creativity at the main parade in Downtown and get inspired! Don't miss the Art Car Parade awards ceremony on Sunday, April 13, at The Orange Show Headquarters. Winning entrants will receive over $15,000 in prize money.  Check out the 2025 program of events here.

The Art Car Parade was born in April 1988 with a 40-car parade seen by an estimated 2,000. By the following year, the parade size doubled and the crowd swelled to tens of thousands.

Another important milestone came in 1989, when Harrod Blank came from California with his art car, "Oh My God." On a quest to document America's art cars, which eventually led to his two books and two films on art cars, Harrod told artists all over the nation about the Houston Art Car Parade, and soon, we began to see caravans of art cars travel thousands of miles to be in the parade.

Did you know that now you can explore the evolution of the Art Car Parade in images? Yes, it is possible! The Orange Show Center for Visionary Art has spent hundreds of hours compiling these images into an online archive free for anyone to view and enjoy. And if you have an image you want to share with the public, you can do it. View the catalog here.
 

Nowadays, the Houston Art Car Parade is the highlight of a four-day celebration of the drive to create.

•    The parade attracts 250+ vehicles and other entries from 23 states, along with Canada and Mexico
•    A live audience of some 250,000+ spectators
•    Parade entries include anything on wheels, from bicycles and unicycles to lawnmowers to cars and go-carts
•    Entries are as likely to be made by members of the general public as by recognized artists

Community groups, public and private schools, and professional organizations have become regular participants. Inspired by what they see, spectators create art cars of their own and often become future participants. As the parade grows, attracting more participants, the complexity and quality of the entries increase.

Over $15,000 is awarded annually to Art Cars in various categories, showcasing the best in creativity, execution, performance, and artistic achievement.

 In 2023, the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art started a new tradition of recognizing at each Art Car Parade the important contributions to Houston's cultural identity made by three individuals: an artist, an educator, and a patron.

2025 Artist Jesse Sifuentes
Jesse Sifuentes, an apprentice of world-famous muralist Dr. John Biggers, has established himself as one of the East End's preeminent artists. During his 30 years as an East End resident, Sifuentes has created scores of public works and collaborated with countless partners to contribute to the area's rich visual history. He currently teaches art at Texas Southern University. He has amassed an impressive collection of public works on the walls of businesses throughout the neighborhoods. Sifuentes works in both paint and mosaic tile, creating murals that speak to the life and history of the community within which he works.

2025 Educator Julon Pinkston
Julon Pinkston is an artist and art educator based in Houston currently teaching at Waltrip High School. Since 2015, he has led art car youth groups to success, earning several accolades in the Houston Art Car Parade and Trinidad, CO. With a passion for mixed media sculpture and painting, his work has been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums, including the Art Car Museum and Ro2 Gallery in Dallas. Pinkston began his artistic career after serving as an Infantry soldier in the US Army. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Houston and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of North Texas. Through his teaching and artistic practice, he continues to inspire creativity and innovation in the classroom and beyond.

2025 Patron & Orange Show Board Member Will Robinson
Thomas Pascal Will Robinson is an entrepreneur, longtime advocate for the art car movement, designer, and artist. Growing up in the Houston and New York art world, he was mentored by Jesse Lott, Mel Chin, David Best, Larry Fuente, and Jim Harithas. He worked alongside his father, Tom Robinson, at Robinson Galleries and later co-owned Pascal Robinson Galleries, promoting Latin and North American art. A lifelong car fanatic, he has restored numerous vehicles, with one featured in the Ann Harithas Collection of Art Cars. He has served on the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art board for over a decade, attending its events since the foundation's early days.

Founded in 1980, the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art focuses on making essential elements of art accessible to the public. This non-profit has become Houston's hub of folk art activity. In addition to the Orange Show Monument, The Beer Can House, and the Houston Art Car Parade, the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art, with the help of over 300 artists from around the world, has developed Smither Park, Houston's first folk-art-inspired green space, located on the same block as the Orange Show Monument.

Smither Park exemplifies the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art's mission by utilizing local artists and individuals in the community to create a lasting, sustainable creative space that will inspire people from across Houston and beyond and help them gain a greater understanding of visionary art.

Photos by Morrris Malakoff and Dantiza Ladwig, courtesy of Art Car Parade and the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art.