San Juan County Fair announces 2026 theme, calls on community for poster art

||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS |||

Fairs nationwide are rallying around the stars and stripes in 2026, tying their themes to America’s 250th birthday! In keeping with this celebration, the San Juan County Fair Board got creative and picked “Red, White, & Ewe!” for our 2026 theme!

“We are so, so looking forward to celebrating with y’all this August! See ewe at the Fair!” said Fair Board Chair Barbara Bevens.

Now that the theme has been announced, San Juan County residents are invited to enter the annual Fair Poster Art Contest! This year, in response to community feedback, the Fair Board made updates to the contest rules.  AI-generated art is no longer accepted and a stiped will be awarded to the winning artist.  All the details are listed below, and we couldn’t be more excited to see what our community comes up with.

POSTER REQUIREMENTS

• Submissions are accepted from all San Juan County residents.
• As the lead advertising and marketing image for the Fair event, each year’s Fair poster must have four key text phrases worked into the design: “San Juan County Fair,” the fair dates “August 13-16, 2026,” the 2026 Fair theme “Red, White, & Ewe,” and the fair website “www.sjcfair.org.”
• Concept art must include some rendition of the theme “Red, White, & Ewe” and Fair elements (this could be the islands, farm animals, agricultural elements, depictions of the summer season, carnival rides—the sky is the limit!)
• Sizing must be an 11″ x 17″ (ideal size) or 8.5″ x 11″
• Art can be any medium, but it may not be generated by artificial intelligence (AI). It must be the original work of the artist. The final copy must be submitted in digital form (this is for printing purposes, and online sharing). Artist is responsible for producing the final digital image (high-resolution) so the work is properly represented.

POSTER SUBMISSION DEADLINES

• Send a scan/photo of a “concept draft” to the Fair Board for consideration via email (email fair@sanjuancountywa.gov) no later than January 5^th, 2026. This can be a sketch, an outline, or partial piece depicting the intended design. The Fair Board may offer suggestions to the design concept.
• The Fair Board will review submissions at the regularly scheduled Fair Board meeting on January 9^th, 2026.
• The poster artist chosen will be asked to produce final digital version of the poster art by the February 2/13/26 Fair Board meeting.

THE PERKS

• You’ll be awarded a stiped to compensate you for your time and talents. The Fair is grateful for your participation and wants to acknowledge artists for their work.  
• You’ll receive a limited-edition t-shirt for the 2026 Fair and season tickets to the Fair ($60 value)!
• You’re helping a locally produced event, getting involved in your community, and participating in the largest county-wide event in the islands!
• You’re joining fellow artists in Fair history!
• Your work is shared both locally and beyond via regional and local newspapers, online blogs and event sites, bulletin boards on across the islands, as well as on the ferries (artist name not permitted on ferry poster copies).

Contact: Amanda Smith, Events Coordinator, amandas@sanjuancountywa.gov, (360) 378-4310

About San Juan County’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Fair     

San Juan County’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Fair oversees public parks on all four ferry-served islands, manages camping, and hosts the San Juan County Fair. The department offices are located at 849 Argyle Avenue, Friday Harbor, WA 98250. For more information about San Juan County’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Fair, visit https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/1949/Parks-Recreation-Fair.