34th Annual Southern Fried Poetry Slam at CityArts

Southern Fried Poetry Slam is an annual performing arts festival celebrating poetry, spoken word, and community outreach. Born in 1993 from a sense of family, home cooked meals and good ol’ Southern food, Southern Fried Poetry shares the absolute best southern offerings......More

Southern Fried Poetry Slam is an annual performing arts festival celebrating poetry, spoken word, and community outreach. Born in 1993 from a sense of family, home cooked meals and good ol’ Southern food, Southern Fried Poetry shares the absolute best southern offerings — hospitality, comfort and tradition. During the first week of June every year, a city in the Southeastern region of the United States plays host to one of the largest Spoken Word and Performance Poetry tournaments in the world and showcases some of the world’s most extraordinary writers, orators and artists whose talents will be on full display as they compete against 200+ poets for cash and prizes, and of course bragging rights to the South! For more information and tickets please click here Events at CityArts (39 S. Magnolia Avenue):  Preliminary Bouts 1–4 | 6PM – 8PM Preliminary Bouts 5-8 | 8:30PM – 10:30PM

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DTOLive! in the Courtyard - Luis Guerrero

Join us on Tuesdays from 4:30–6:30 PM in the newly renovated FORDify the Arts Courtyard at CityArts for live music and great vibes! Free event, open to all. Stop by, unwind, and enjoy the music! 

CityArts, 39 S. Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL, 32801, United States

34th Annual Southern Fried Poetry Slam at CityArts

Southern Fried Poetry Slam is an annual performing arts festival celebrating poetry, spoken word, and community outreach. Born in 1993 from a sense of family, home cooked meals and good ol’ Southern food, Southern Fried Poetry shares the absolute best southern offerings......More

Southern Fried Poetry Slam is an annual performing arts festival celebrating poetry, spoken word, and community outreach. Born in 1993 from a sense of family, home cooked meals and good ol’ Southern food, Southern Fried Poetry shares the absolute best southern offerings — hospitality, comfort and tradition. During the first week of June every year, a city in the Southeastern region of the United States plays host to one of the largest Spoken Word and Performance Poetry tournaments in the world and showcases some of the world’s most extraordinary writers, orators and artists whose talents will be on full display as they compete against 200+ poets for cash and prizes, and of course bragging rights to the South! For more information and tickets click here Events at CityArts:  Preliminary Bouts 9–12 | 6PM – 8PM Preliminary Bouts 13–16 | 8:30PM – 10:30PM  

CityArts, 39 S. Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL, 32801, United States

34th Annual Southern Fried Poetry Slam at CityArts

Southern Fried Poetry Slam is an annual performing arts festival celebrating poetry, spoken word, and community outreach. Born in 1993 from a sense of family, home cooked meals and good ol’ Southern food, Southern Fried Poetry shares the absolute best southern offerings......More

Southern Fried Poetry Slam is an annual performing arts festival celebrating poetry, spoken word, and community outreach. Born in 1993 from a sense of family, home cooked meals and good ol’ Southern food, Southern Fried Poetry shares the absolute best southern offerings — hospitality, comfort and tradition. During the first week of June every year, a city in the Southeastern region of the United States plays host to one of the largest Spoken Word and Performance Poetry tournaments in the world and showcases some of the world’s most extraordinary writers, orators and artists whose talents will be on full display as they compete against 200+ poets for cash and prizes, and of course bragging rights to the South! For more information and tickets click here Events at CityArts:  Preliminary Bouts 17–20 | 6PM – 8PM Preliminary Bouts 21–24 | 8:30PM – 10:30PM LGBTQIA+ Open Mic | 11PM – 1AM

CityArts, 39 S. Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL, 32801, United States

Monday Scaries at CityArts

Join the Monday Scaries at CityArts for a night of unhinged comedy, big laughs, and questionable life choices (the fun kind)! Tickets are $5 at the door (cash/venmo). Don’t miss out!

CityArts, 39 S. Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL, 32801, United States

"State Flower Ladies" Exhibition by June Bunch Opens in the CityArts Café on June 18, 2026

For State Flower Ladies, June Bunch transforms 50 state flowers into botanical ballerinas. Her illustrations combine figure drawing with floral theatrics, adding elements of vibrant colors and texture-rich embroidery to her work. In an instant, her images stretch the vi......More

For State Flower Ladies, June Bunch transforms 50 state flowers into botanical ballerinas. Her illustrations combine figure drawing with floral theatrics, adding elements of vibrant colors and texture-rich embroidery to her work. In an instant, her images stretch the viewer’s eye past the present to see the blossom’s full-seasonal vitality, summarized in one frozen motion.Bunch curates contemporary illustrations by studying plants’ “choreography” of growth, illuminating their dance with vibrant colors and clean lines. Her visual art remains rooted in botany and ballet, featuring postures that hold emotional richness, highlighting human nature and flora in a bold, empowering way.The art is created first through expressive figure drawings and botanical sketches that are then translated digitally and drawn line-by-line with a pen-tool, tending to each marking with thoughtful detail.To dive into the story behind each illustration, you can visit https://www.junebunch.com/illustrationAbout the artist: June Bunch (@junebunchstudio) is a self-taught illustrator from St. Petersburg, FL. Her art focuses on natural growth, interpreting plants’ movement through human body language. She studied botany and illustrated for plant nurseries before moving to Juneau, AK  as a naturalist guide. There, June grew inspired by the “choreography” of the natural world around her and humanized it, incorporating figure drawing paired with a love of dance.Her work has won an honorable mention at the Morean Arts Center and has been on display at the Imagine Museum, Dunedin Fine Arts Center, Five Deuces Galleria, Art@400, The Werk Gallery, and the Gulf Coast Arts Alliance Gallery. She has recently been awarded a micro-grant from the Gobioff Foundation which sponsored a portion of the State Flower Ladies exhibition.

CityArts, 39 S. Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL, 32801, United States

Today (It’s Not OK) A Special Exhibition by Parker Sketch at Side Gallery in CityArts

Today (It’s Not OK)A Special Exhibition by Parker SketchArt For All Spaces presents Today (It’s Not OK), a powerful and timely exhibition by Orlando-based artist Parker Sketch, opening with a public reception on June 18th , 2026, in the Side Gallery at CityArts in downt......More

Today (It’s Not OK)A Special Exhibition by Parker SketchArt For All Spaces presents Today (It’s Not OK), a powerful and timely exhibition by Orlando-based artist Parker Sketch, opening with a public reception on June 18th , 2026, in the Side Gallery at CityArts in downtown Orlando. The exhibition runs through July 11th , 2026. Rooted in painting and art historical awareness, Today (It’s Not OK) reflects an emotional and political reckoning shaped by the turbulence of the present moment. The exhibition draws from abstraction and expressive mark-making while carrying a deeper conceptual weight—revealing works that appear visually inviting at first glance, yet speak directly to contemporary realities of chaos, oppression, and uncertainty. As novelist and cultural icon Toni Morrison stated:“All good art is political! There is none that isn’t. And the ones that try hard not to be political are political by saying, ‘We love the status quo.’” That philosophy resonates strongly throughout this exhibition. Reflecting on the work, Parker Sketch shares: “The past year has been challenging. World news and politics are depressing. Recently I have been avoiding conceptual art and pop art because working on these styles doesn’t feel right for me in this moment in history. Most of my recent work has been abstract and expressive. While I was working on these pieces, I found that even though I was trying to avoid it, I was creating extremely personal and political work. At first glance, these pieces seem like pleasant abstracts, but they are speaking to today’s world of chaos and oppression.” About the ArtistParker Sketch earned his BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and has built a multifaceted career grounded in painting, art history, and professional arts practice. His experience includes working in galleries, frame shops, museums, and fine-art fashion studios, where he has served as an artist, designer, and project manager. Now based in Orlando, Parker is a highly active figure in the local arts community. He exhibits regularly, curates exhibitions, and is a resident artist at FAVO, where he regularly hosts a monthly critique group for local artists. His practice reflects both deep technical knowledge and a commitment to critical engagement through visual language. SponsorsThis special exhibition is made possible with the generous support of Roberta Alfonso, Baxter Systems, Vicki Green, and others, whose commitment to the arts helps bring important and challenging conversations into public view.

CityArts, 39 S. Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL, 32801, United States

Third Thursday Opening Night Reception - June 2026

Join us for Third Thursday at CityArts. Enjoy drink specials, curator conversations, artist connections, and seven new exhibitions. Meet the artists and explore what’s new in the galleries.CityArts is a proud partner of the newly expanded 3rd Thursday Orlando: Arts. Mak......More

Join us for Third Thursday at CityArts. Enjoy drink specials, curator conversations, artist connections, and seven new exhibitions. Meet the artists and explore what’s new in the galleries.CityArts is a proud partner of the newly expanded 3rd Thursday Orlando: Arts. Making. History.____________________________________________________ Featured exhibitions at CityArts include:Austin Commercial Gallery – “CityArts Retrospective: Celebrating 20 Years” ExhibitionUpstairs Signature Gallery – Art-ivism Group ExhibitionSide Gallery – “Today (It’s Not OK)” A Special Exhibition by Parker SketchCityArts Café Gallery – “State Flower Ladies”: Exhibition by June BunchThe Mahesh Chaddah Family Trust Spotlight Gallery – Solo Exhibition by Roberto GonzalezNew Art in the Young Artists Gallery & Redefine Gallery____________________________________________________ PARKINGCityArts provides parking validations for the Plaza Parking Garage ONLY. The validation reduces the parking fee to $4. The Library Parking Garage is closer, but CityArts does not provide parking validations for that garage. Metered street parking is free after 6:00 p.m. ____________________________________________________ Thank You to Our Annual Sponsors:Orange County Arts and Cultural Affairs City of Orlando United Arts of Central Florida Downtown Development Board Remixed

CityArts, 39 S. Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL, 32801, United States

Tastemaker Tuesday at CityArts

A night of creativity, connection, and custom wine—crafted by you. Follow a guided workshop in tasting, blending, and bottling your own wine at CityArts Gallery in Downtown Orlando.   During this interactive workshop, you’ll: Learn about the art winemakingTasted 3 red w......More

A night of creativity, connection, and custom wine—crafted by you. Follow a guided workshop in tasting, blending, and bottling your own wine at CityArts Gallery in Downtown Orlando.   During this interactive workshop, you’ll: Learn about the art winemakingTasted 3 red wines evaluating appearance, aroma, and body of eachBlend until you find the perfect recipe that matches your tasteBottle it, cork it, name it and label it to take homeWHAT’s included: 90-minute guided wine blending session by our head winemaker and sommelier(1) custom 750 ml bottle of your signature red blendArtisanal snacks and palate cleansersAccess to the CityArts Gallery after-hoursGood vibes, great conversation,  and new friendsLocation: CityArts Gallery, 39 S. Magnolia Ave, Downtown Orlando Parking: free on the Street or $4 at the plaza Parking Garage (15 S Court Ave, Orlando, FL 32801) with validation. Bring your ticket to Cityarts.  When: 6:00 PM to 8:00 pm (ish) Price: $65 per guest Policy: Reservation required. 24-hour cancellation notice to avoid fee.  

CityArts, 39 S. Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL, 32801, United States

DTOLive! in the Courtyard - Samantha Lee

Join us on Tuesdays from 4:30–6:30 PM in the newly renovated FORDify the Arts Courtyard at CityArts for live music and great vibes! Free event, open to all. Stop by, unwind, and enjoy the music! 

CityArts, 39 S. Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL, 32801, United States