Midwest Fire Fest

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Tami Colin

The custom-built kiln at Midwest Fire Fest is opened for just 10 minutes each year at 9 p.m.

Midwest Fire Fest

This is a little different from the usual summer art and craft fair. Midwest Fire Fest builds on Cambridge’s past and present as a center for pottery, and its centerpiece is the creation of a seven-foot tall sculpture (this year from guest sculptor Janina Myronowa) made in the park from some 1,000 pounds of clay and fired there in a 15-foot kiln! If this sounds crazy, well, you have to see it to believe it. The fiery unveiling takes place at 9 p.m. on Saturday. But wait, that’s not all. Demos of the heated arts — including ceramics, glass, fire dancing and an iron pour, will be joined by more typical fair fare, like food carts and music including sets from Krusher from the Rockonsin youth garage band competition (3 p.m.), Joseph Huber Band (5 p.m.) and VO5 (8 p.m.) on Saturday, and Michael King’s piano brunch (11 a.m.) and Val Sigal’s accordion party (1 p.m.) on Sunday.

media release: Since its first fest ten years ago, one of the hallmark features of Midwest Fire Fest is the creation of a seven foot tall sculpture, made from 1,000 pounds of clay. It’s built at West Side Park the week before the Fest, and then fired there in a custom-built 15 foot kiln for five days at 2000 degrees. At 9:00pm, Saturday, June 13, the kiln will be opened for the audience to see, with flames shooting 30 feet into the air, a crowd-pleasing feature of Midwest Fire Fest. 

The one-of-a-kind festival will happen June 13 from 10:00am to 10:00pm and June 14 from 10:00am to 4:00 pm at Westside Park in the heart of downtown Cambridge.

For 2026, Midwest Fire Fest Creative Director Mark Skudlarek selected Ukranian-born artist Janina Myronowa as the guest sculptor. With assistance from Skudlarek, she’ll be creating this year’s sculpture at West Side Park beginning June 1st, and will continue on-site throughout that week. The internationally-known Myronowa has been based in Poland, with residencies worldwide, including her current one at The Clay Studio in Philadelphia. “We’re lucky to have gotten a renowned talent, and wonderful person for this year’s sculpture,” says Skudlarek, “and lucky that her work will live in Cambridge for years to come.” 

Midwest Fire Fest is Midwest’s only event focusing on where fire meets fine art. Artists will be bringing their work from Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, South Dakota, New York, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. Live fire demonstrations in ceramics, glass and jewelry, molten sculpture, fire dancing, an iron pour, a pottery pit firing, food carts, and the signature spectacle—a 7-foot ceramic sculpture will revealed while still glowing red-hot from the kiln from 9:00pm to 9:10.

Disco/funk band VO5 will headline the music stage on Saturday, along with The Joseph Huber Band, Krusher from the Rockonsin youth garage band competition, and Sunday will feature Val Sigal’s accordion party and Michael King’s piano brunch. 

Hosted by the Cambridge Arts Council and The Clay Collective, the event strengthens the region’s identity as a destination for ceramicists, makers, and artists from across the country. 

Saturday, June 13

3:00–4:00 PM — TBD finalist from Rockonsin, Wisconsin’s high school garage band contest

5:00–7:00 PM — The Joseph Huber Band

8:00–10:00 PM — VO5

Sunday, June 14

11:00 AM–1:00 PM — Michael King — Piano

1:00–4:00 PM — Val Sigal --- Polka