Developers Build Condos, SHINE Builds Culture: This Year Is All About Local Talent
St. Petersburg’s biggest art tradition is back, and this year it feels closer to home than ever. The SHINE Mural Festival returns for its 11th season this November, once again turning the city’s walls into living canvases. But in a powerful shift, every featured artist this year comes from right here in Tampa Bay.
Since its launch in 2015, SHINE has transformed St. Pete into an open-air museum where color and creativity collide with concrete. The festival celebrates both established and emerging talent, bringing bold stories to public spaces that define what it means to live in the Sunshine City. For 2025, organizers decided to push the local angle even further, showcasing the region’s own artists who helped make St. Pete’s streets what they are today.
The move is being praised by the community as a way to keep art where it belongs, in the hands of the people who built this city’s culture. And in a time when condos seem to rise faster than murals, that decision hits a nerve.
The Festival Dates and Events
This year’s festival runs from November 1st through November 15th, moving from its traditional October slot to avoid hurricane season interruptions. It’s a smart adjustment that shows how organizers continue to evolve while keeping their focus on the art and the artists.
We Built This City: Women Artists of SHINE
Running now through October 22nd at the Morean Arts Center on Central Avenue, this exhibition honors 16 women who have shaped the public art movement across St. Pete. Their murals have helped define the city’s visual identity and turned forgotten corners into cultural landmarks. It’s a fitting reminder of who truly built St. Pete’s creative heartbeat, not county boards or developers, but the artists who brought walls to life.
The GLOW Experience with SHINE
The festival’s signature party takes place November 7th from 6 to 10 p.m. at Reflection St. Pete on 3rd Avenue North. The evening combines live music, art installations, and curated food and cocktails from local favorites including Perry’s Porch, 3 Daughters Brewing, The Mandarin Hide, Trophy Fish, and Parkshore Grill. Tickets start at $125, and the night promises to blend nightlife with artistry in the most St. Pete way possible.
SHINE Origins: Finale
Closing night happens November 15th from 7 to 10 p.m. at 2606 Fairfield Avenue South. Guests can expect a high-energy DJ set from Austen Van Der Bleek and gourmet eats by Celebrity Chef Johnathan Rodriguez, known for his appearances on the Food Network. Tickets begin at $15, making this the kind of accessible, community-centered event the county should be funding more often.
Murals That Shape the City
After a decade of transforming city walls, Derek Donnelly is finally stepping into the SHINE spotlight. Often called the godfather of St. Pete street art, he has painted nearly every corner of the city, but this will be his first time featured in the festival. Word around town suggests he may soon revisit a familiar wall on 4th Street, a moment that could bring St. Pete’s art story full circle. For a city built on creativity and reinvention, seeing one of its original visionaries return to the canvas feels like the kind of homecoming only St. Pete could pull off.
Over the years, the festival has not only attracted visitors from around the country but also proven how art can drive local identity, tourism, and pride more effectively than any corporate development plan. It is living proof that creativity, not concrete, keeps St. Pete moving forward.
Helen French, the festival’s new director, told Creative Loafing that this year’s lineup will feature exclusively regional artists, reaffirming SHINE’s commitment to authenticity and community. That decision cements SHINE as more than an art event; it is a statement about who controls the narrative of St. Pete’s future.
The Real Glow Behind SHINE
Every November, SHINE reminds us that art is more than decoration. It is documentation, a reflection of stories, struggles, and the soul of a city. While local politicians and county leaders debate how to “grow the economy,” SHINE quietly proves that art already does it better. Public murals inspire travel, strengthen community bonds, and give residents something to be proud of.
As the paint dries across downtown walls, the question remains. If this festival can uplift the community and drive tourism, why isn’t the county doing more to back it? Maybe it’s time to hold them accountable for supporting the artists who make St. Pete shine, both figuratively and literally.
