A few weeks from now, Bastrop turns its downtown into an outdoor gallery for the day. The Bastrop Art Fest returns on Saturday, November 7, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Lost Pines Art Center, at 1204 Chestnut Street in downtown Bastrop, just outside Austin in the Texas Hill Country. Admission is free and the event is all ages, so it works as a low-stakes day trip for families or anyone who wants to spend a few hours browsing local work.
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The core of the day is a curated selection of arts and craft vendors, but the live demonstrations are what tend to draw people in. The Silo Arts Campus brings glassblowing, blacksmithing and live painting to the street, and there are hands-on arts and crafts activities for anyone who would rather make something than just look at it. Local vendors also set up food, and live music and performances run throughout the day.
One of the more interesting acts on the bill is the Chubby Knuckle Choir, a Texas band that actually got its start in Bastrop back in 2009. The name came from former bass player and original member Curtis Farley while he was working in Twisted Twig Studio with Rory and Perry, and it was shortened from "Chubby Knucklehead Choir" before the band settled on it. Now based in Austin, they're a frenetic sextet that throws bongos and banjos at the same stage, blending country, bluegrass, R&B and swamp blues. The lineup includes Perry Lowe on guitar, drums, keys and vocals, along with Tres Womack, Josh Droegemueller, Luke Adair, Dave Gould and Rory Smith, a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. They've played The Texas Music Scene, the syndicated radio show "Real Life, Real Music" and the television program "Songwriters Across Texas," and their 2015 album Reveille was recorded live at Austin's Congress House Studio with guest spots from Glenn Fukunaga, Haley Cole and Sons of Fathers' David Beck.
Behind the scenes, the Silo Arts Campus is worth knowing about. It's built out of reclaimed industrial architecture, with four silos each serving a different craft: the Glassblowing silo is a fully functioning studio that runs classes, demonstrations and artist residencies; the Fired Arts silo covers ceramics, fused glass and torchwork; The Forge is a blacksmithing studio and one of the only public-access forges within a 50-mile radius; and Allcraft is a multi-use cultural hub for cold arts. The Glassblowing silo is the one currently in operation, and it's the anchor of the whole campus.
The Lost Pines Art Center keeps things going year-round, with free admission to the gallery and shows and a steady stream of classes, exhibits and membership programs. One of its more playful community projects is "Rockin' Bastrop: Art in the Wild!", where local artists paint one-of-a-kind rocks and hide them throughout Bastrop's parks and trails, like Bob Bryant Park, Fisherman's Park and Kerr Community Park. Each rock has a QR code that links to the artist and the project, and the center encourages you to find one, take a selfie and then rehide it or carry it along. It's a nice reminder that the art scene here doesn't pack up when the festival ends.
Published Date
16 October 2026
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