2026 Best of Lex: Arts & Culture

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Community

Lexington is blessed with an incredible array of people, organizations and businesses who create, facilitate and support the world class visual art, performance and other cultural offerings that enrich the lives of all who live in or visit our city.

From music, theater, literary and visual art, to comedy, festivals, galleries and dance, we are lucky to live in a place rich with art and culture.

Our readers have voted on their  favorite artists, galleries, festivals and other cultural offerings in Lexington, which we’ve outlined on the pages that follow!

Best Art Gallery

  1. 21c Museum Hotel
  2. The Living Arts and Science Center
  3. Lexington Art League
  4. Artists’ Attic

Best Art Museum

  1. University of Kentucky Art Museum
  2. Headley Whitney Museum of Art
  3. 21c Museum Hotel
  4. Artists’ Attic

Best Arts Organization

  1. The Living Arts & Science Center
  2. Allégro Dance Project
  3. Kentucky Ballet Theatre
  4. Lexington Art League

Best City Event

  1. Woodland Art Fair
  2. Thriller Parade
  3. Lexington Pride Festival

BY MAYOR LINDA GORTON

Kip Cornett has long been one of Lexington’s most imaginative champions, guided by his belief that no idea is too big.

Kip never waits for permission to think boldly or dream big. In 2025 — a milestone year when Lexington marked its 250th anniversary — he, alongside Dr. Eunice Beatty, helped lead a year-long celebration that showcased our city’s storied history, and gave our community a well-deserved victory lap. 

Kip’s distinct vision has been clear for more than 30 years, as he built and led his namesake advertising agency, Cornett. That vision uniquely positioned him to promote Lexington with confidence, delivering the world to Lexington and delivering Lexington to the world. 

Kip’s investment in our community has been nothing short of transformational. His impact can be seen in the enduring success of Picnic with the Pops, the global spotlight of the Breeders’ Cup and the FEI World Equestrian Games, and the continued momentum around Gatton Park on the Town Branch, where he serves as a board member. He also exhibits passion for the community through his deep involvement with the Urban League, the YMCA of Central Kentucky, and the Fayette Alliance.

When Lexington needs someone to elevate the momentum, Kip knows how to show up and push big ideas across the finish line. And our city is undeniably better because of it!

Best Annual Food Week

  1. Lexington Burger Week
  2. Lexington Restaurant Week
  3. Lexington Pizza Week

Honorable Mentions:

  • Lexington Taco Week
  • Lexington Bourbon Week

Best Dance School/Troupe

  1. Bluegrass Youth Ballet
  2. Arthur Murray Dance Studio
  3. Kentucky Ballet Theater
  4. Allegro Dance Project

Best Local Arts Festival

  1. Woodland Art Fair
  2. Twelve Lions Film Festival
  3. Bluegrass Creative Market

Best Local Movie Theater

  1. Kentucky Theatre
  2. LexLive
  3. Cinemark at Fayette Mall

Best Local Festival

  1. Railbird
  2. CRAVE Food + Music Festival
  3. Tahlsound Concert Series

Best Local Theater Company

  1. Lexington Children’s Theatre
  2. Lexington Theatre Company
  3. Studio Players
  4. Antagonist Productions

Best Local Tour

  1. Bites of the Bluegrass
  2. Keeneland
  3. Ghost Walk of Lexington

Best Local Performing Arts Venue

  1. Lexington Opera House
  2. Kentucky Theatre
  3. The Burl
  4. Singletary Center for the Arts

Ode to Marcia Thornton Jones & Debbie Dadey

Smiley Pete Staff Salute (adapted from the Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame bio written by Tom Eblen)

Marcia Thornton Jones and Debbie Dadey were faculty members at Sayre School in the late 1980s when they began talking one day about children’s books: what they liked, what they didn’t like, and how they might like to write one themselves someday.

“And then Marcia just said, ‘Well, why don’t we do it? Let’s start tomorrow,’” Dadey recalled.

While on lunch break the next day, they jotted down story ideas and made homework assignments for each other. Week after week, month after month, they collaborated on new stories and mailed them off to publishers. After nearly two years of rejection slips, a representative from Scholastic, one of the nation’s largest publishers for young people, called the Sayre School to request one of their manuscripts.

The novel “Vampires Don’t Wear Polka Dots” was published in 1990. In the years since then, Dadey and Jones have written and published about 100 books together, as well as dozens more as solo writers. Most of their jointly written books are part of what became the Bailey School Kids series — stories about the adventures of young students at the Bailey School who encounter teachers and other adults who may or may not be mythical beings, such as vampires, werewolves or dragons. They estimate their books have sold about 46 million copies worldwide, making them among the most prolific and successful authors for young people.

“Children’s books need to be very tightly written,” Jones said. “Writing for kids can be more difficult than writing for adults, because every word matters. Every character matters.”

But writing for children is also rewarding, they said, because it can literally change lives.

“Kids are learning their place in their world,” Jones said. 

“We have to treat our audience with respect, because children are smart, much smarter than we think.”

Jones and Dadey are among the inductees in the 2026 Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame. Congratulations to these two authors for their long-running success in the literary world! 

Best Local Author

  1. Silas House
  2. Crystal Wilkinson
  3. Frank X Walker

Honorable Mentions:

  • Gwenda Bond
  • Ada Limon
  • Kim Edwards

Best Local Visual Artist

  1. Wylie Caudill
  2. Kiptoo Taurus
  3. Robert Beatty
  4. Bob Morgan

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