Balloons? Art? …

Over 40 artists joined together to present the first ever 48 Blocks Festival in Atlantic City on September 20th 2025 by The Atlantic City Arts Foundation. It was a beautiful windy day in The Inlet. There were a ton of vendors, and musical artists including bands like Snacktime, Groupo La Nuevo Era, Jimmy Cuzzie, Saturn Daze, Te Vista, CJ Sooy & The Rain Dawgs, and West Meadow Dwellers. Sapphire Balloons and Events was only 1 of 29 non musical artists that were chosen out of about 65 applicants.

Featured Artists Included: ANNALIESE GIUNTA, BERNARD DELACRUZ, BRYCE BAYER, CARA & JOHN VAUGHN, CHRISTINA TRICE, CHUNG-FAN CHANG, COLIN MURPHY, EM WHITE, GARY LINDLEY, HEATHER DEEGAN HIRES, HELEN CLYMER, IAN DEIBERT, JEFF MCGILL, JILL Morrison, JOHN MORRIS, JOYAS DE Honduras, KATRINA JOHNSON, LEVENTHAL GLASS, LYNTAGA SMITH, RETROFUTURE, ROBERT BOSE, SASCHA RABBITS, STEPHEN BIEBEL, STEVE KUZMA, TABITHA BROWN, TYGER-B, VERDIANA BELINDA, VICTOR SANDOVAL, and YONNIE COLLELUORI,CBA

Photo Credit: Nastassia Davis Photography Pictured: Yonnie Colleluori, CBA of Sapphire Balloons And Events with her balloon art entry at the 48BlocksFestival in Atlantic City

According to the Arts Foundation website the “48 Blocks is a program of the Atlantic City Arts Foundation, dedicated to bringing public art to every Atlantic City neighborhood, made possible by our networks of artists, volunteers, donors, and community partners. It includes the 48 Blocks Festival and Atlantic City’s largest mural arts program.

Why “48 Blocks”?

Did you know Atlantic City spans 48 blocks? Public art created for 48 Blocks can be found in every neighborhood in the city—murals, adirondack chairs, and planters. The festival incorporates projects by residents and visitors, all intended to celebrate Atlantic City.

48 Blocks Festival

One day. One place. A full-tilt celebration of Atlantic City’s creative spirit—featuring art, live performances, and stories from all 48 blocks 🧃🦜

48 Blocks Festival is a fully-loaded festival, complete with two stages of local live music, theater, and poetry, a full schedule of art activities and demonstrations, a marketplace of exhibiting artists and vendors, social service resources, restaurant pop-ups, and most importantly, you.

This festival is dedicated to the diverse and unique; to the beautiful and strange; the beloved and misunderstood: to the artist in us all.

Evolving from a citywide public arts initiative, 48 Blocks Festival is a culmination of Atlantic City’s creative energy presented as a free day-long celebration of art, culture, and community, where everyone is invited and participation is encouraged.”

We had fun meeting all the different artists including Robert Bose who does Festival art called "Balloon Chain". He's participated in Coachella and other festivals showing balloons can be beautiful art!

The following photos are courtesy and property of Ruben Garcia, Nastassia Davis Photography, Sapphire Balloons And Events respectively.