Get the First Glimpse of Arts Landing
The space will host its first public event to complement the 2026 NFL Draft.
PHOTO BY BETSY BENSON
A new events space will be up and running in time for the 2026 NFL Draft.
On Friday, April 17, officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Arts Landing, marking the soft opening of the four-acre civic space owned by the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust.
It will host its first public event April 23-25; the Pitt Block Party will welcome Draft-goers and local Pitt fans alike with an “immersive football experience” that will include an experiential Pitt Football museum and an interactive Draft showcase.
“Arts Landing builds on the Cultural Trust’s mission by creating a new Downtown destination where people want to gather, stay longer and return more often,” Kendra Whitlock Ingram, president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, says in a statement. “This is a momentous day for the Trust, Downtown, and our entire region.”
It will also be the new home of the Three Rivers Arts Festival, which had hopped around the city a bit after being expelled from its longtime home at Point State Park in 2022. The 2026 festival will mark the space’s official grand opening June 5-7.
The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust will also launch its inaugural public art program at Arts Landing this summer, which the organization calls “a bold and visionary initiative that reimagines the role of art in civil life.”
The debut exhibition will run throughout the summer and feature newly commissioned projects by nine artists with ties to Pittsburgh.
Officials say they are also working hard to plan a long list of summer activities at the site; every other Tuesday, JazzLive will treat visitors to al fresco music, and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre will host free ballet-inspired fitness classes each Friday.
For a full list of upcoming fun at Arts Landing, check out the Cultural Trust’s website.
