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The Ridge at Chestnut
The Ridge at Chestnut

Discover Kansas City Culture: Festivals, Art, and Museums in KC

Kansas City's art, music, and museum scene is one of the best in the Midwest, and a lot of it is completely free. Between a thriving art district and a festival calendar that runs all year, there's no shortage of ways to experience the creative side of the city. Here's where to start. Many of these events and institutions are just a short drive from The Ridge at Chestnut Apartments in South Kansas City.  


Explore the Crossroads Arts District  

The Crossroads Arts District is the heart of Kansas City's art scene. Stretching roughly from 17th to 20th Street between Baltimore and Southwest Boulevard, the neighborhood is packed with galleries, studios, and creative businesses. It's the main art district Kansas City, MO has to offer, and it's completely walkable.  

The best way to experience it is during First Fridays, a free monthly event where dozens of galleries open their doors, food trucks line the streets, and live music pops up on nearly every block. It draws thousands of people and runs year-round, making it one of the easiest ways to tap into the local art scene on any given month.  

Beyond First Fridays, the Crossroads is worth visiting any day of the week. Galleries like Sherry Leedy Contemporary Art, Belger Arts, and Studios Inc. rotate exhibitions regularly. You'll also find murals scattered throughout the neighborhood that are worth a slow walk through on a quiet afternoon.  

A large white sculpture of a flower with a ball at its base is in the foreground of a grassy field with a building in the background.

Festivals Worth Marking on Your Calendar  

Kansas City's festival scene goes well beyond barbecue competitions, and several of the biggest events are built around art and creativity. Here are a few annual festivals in Kansas City, MO, to keep on your radar:  

  • Plaza Art Fair (September): One of the longest-running art festivals in the country, now over 90 years old. It spans nine blocks of the Country Club Plaza and features 240 artists, three live music stages, and food from more than 20 local restaurants. It's the biggest art festival Kansas City, MO has to offer, drawing 250,000 people each fall, and admission is free.  

  • Art Westport (September): KC's oldest local art show, exclusively featuring Kansas City artists. Over 100 artists set up along the streets of the historic Westport neighborhood with original paintings, ceramics, jewelry, and more. It's smaller and more intimate than the Plaza Art Fair, with a strong community feel.  

  • KC Fringe Festival (July): A two-week showcase of theater, dance, film, visual art, and experimental performance from both local and national artists. If you lean toward the unconventional, this one's for you.  

  • Boulevardia (Summer): A multi-day urban street festival put on by Boulevard Brewing Company, built around beer, food, and live music. It's become one of KC's signature summer events.  
A person with a hat and tattoos is sitting on the ground drawing on the pavement.

Free Museums You Can Visit Anytime  

There's no shortage of free museums in Kansas City, MO, and the quality is genuinely impressive.  

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art is the standout. With a permanent collection spanning 5,000 years of art history and the iconic Shuttlecocks sculpture on the lawn, it's one of the best free art museums in the country. The outdoor Donald J. Hall Sculpture Park is also free to explore and makes for a great afternoon on its own. Right down the road, the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art offers a more focused look at modern and contemporary work, with rotating exhibitions and free public programs year-round.  

The National WWI Museum and Memorial charges admission for the indoor exhibits, but the outdoor grounds and Liberty Memorial tower are free to explore and offer some of the best views in Kansas City.  

For something a little different, check out the Money Museum at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. You can watch millions of dollars in currency being processed, try to lift a real gold bar, and browse the Harry S. Truman coin collection. It's free, open weekdays, and every visitor walks out with a bag of shredded U.S. currency as a souvenir.  




More Art and Culture Around the City  

Kansas City's cultural identity runs deeper than any one neighborhood. The 18th & Vine Jazz District is a must for anyone interested in the city's musical roots. This is where Kansas City jazz was born, and today the district is home to both the American Jazz Museum and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, two institutions telling stories that shaped American culture as a whole. The district also hosts its own annual arts festival each September, celebrating Black artists and the cultural contributions that have enriched the city.  

Beyond the established districts, Kansas City's street art and mural scene keeps growing. You'll find large-scale murals across the Crossroads, the West Bottoms, and scattered through neighborhoods on both sides of the state line.  

A mural of a man's face is on the side of a building.

Find Your Spot in South KC  

All of this is part of what makes Kansas City such an easy place to enjoy, and living in the right spot puts it all within reach. If you're looking for apartments in South Kansas City, Ridge at Chestnut keeps you close to the Crossroads, the Plaza, 18th & Vine, and the city's best museums and festivals. Schedule a tour today and see the space for yourself. 

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