The Armadillo Christmas Bazaar has announced their full artist lineup for their 50th season taking place Saturday, December 13 - Sunday, December 21, 2025 at the Palmer Events Center (900 Barton Springs Road, Austin, Texas 78704). View the complete list of artists here. With nearly 200 artists, the Armadillo's curated lineup blends fine art and functional design—featuring paintings, jewelry, ceramics, photography, glass, woodwork, and imaginative gift items. It's the perfect holiday destination to discover something meaningful while enjoying seasonal cocktails, local brews, wine, mocktails, and food. And of course, no Armadillo experience would be complete without its exceptional music lineup, showcasing acclaimed local and national musicians on an intimate stage. Music lovers can expect a particularly stellar lineup for Armadillo's 50th season with familiar favorites like Shinyribs, GRAMMY-winner Ruthie Foster, Kelly Willis and Madam Radar, along with many others to be announced. The music lineup will be released late October, until the big reveal, revisit past legends in their Music Archives at armadillobazaar.com/musicians. Additionally, tickets will go on sale along with the music lineup being revealed at ArmadilloBazaar.com. Sign up for the newsletter and follow @ArmadilloBazaar for early-bird alerts, artist reveals, and behind-the-scenes stories. Don't miss 50 seasons of keeping Austin weird!
As one of Austin's most beloved and longest-running holiday traditions, the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar has been honoring our city's fine art, music and counterculture for five decades. At the center of Armadillo is their devotion to and support of their artists who make the Bazaar possible. Since Armadillo's inception, Executive Producer Bruce Willenzik has always had the intention for the Bazaar to be a living laboratory of cultural prosperity on three levels: individual, collective and community.
The Bazaar's longevity and ever growing list of artists returning to showcase their work year after year is a testament to their commitment to uplifting their artists and welcoming them into the Armadillo family.
The Armadillo has a sense of community like no other Art Show,
said Paige Whitcomb, a long term Armadillo Christmas Bazaar artist. The show producers cultivate a warm and welcoming environment for artists and patrons alike. Every time we arrive at the Armadillo at Christmas we feel like we are coming home. We feel like we have a chosen family there and we really enjoy spending the holidays with them.
The Armadillo (Armadillo World Headquarters) and the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar are Austin history,
said Greg Davis of Greg Davis Photography and Armadillo Christmas Bazaar artist since 2007. To want to be a part of that legacy is a no brainer. It's a peek into a window of what made, and still makes, Austin cool (and weird). A lot of new people have come to town, but I don't think that they can say they are Austinites until they come to the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar.
I believe you dance with the one that brought you, and the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar has brought me way back from the beginning,
said Daryl Howard of Daryl Howard Art and Armadillo Christmas Bazaar artist since 1986. It is just the most remarkable show I've ever done, I don't do any other shows like this. People know that the Armadillo is part of the Austin music scene and its part of its history, keeping Austin weird.
I grew up in the Armadillo, and I've seen firsthand how it brings artists, musicians and audiences together like nowhere else,
said Anne Johnson, Producer & General Manager of the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar. For 50 seasons our artists and musicians have been family—many of them for decades—and now even across generations. That kind of loyalty and creativity is rare, and it's what makes the Armadillo a true Austin tradition.
In addition to the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar announcing their artist lineup, they unveiled their new logo Dottie
(by Austin's own Blase Design) over the summer—a colorful armadillo rendered in playful pinks, aquas, and deep blues—and have put their new mascot front and center on the new I Armadillo Austin
collection—now available at ArmadilloBazaar.com/shop. By turning armadillo
into a verb, the line isn't just a statement of pride—it's an invitation to join a movement that honors the Armadillo's counterculture roots and keeps Austin weird for the next fifty seasons by championing makers who keep 100% of their sales, and bringing people together through art, music, and community. To celebrate 50 seasons, each artist was invited to interpret the armadillo in their own medium and style—no rules, just creative freedom. The community can discover hundreds of unique armadillos on-site, watch behind-the-scenes process videos, and cast their votes in the People's Choice Awards for their favorites.
About the History
The Armadillo Christmas Bazaar was born out of necessity and a desire to expand the cultural reach at Austin's renowned Armadillo World Headquarters (AWHQ). The music venue served as the epicenter of Austin's counterculture movement and hosted notable stars such as Willie Nelson, Bruce Springsteen, Emmylou Harris, Elvis Costello, Count Basie, and Talking Heads, but was struggling to survive financially. An offhand comment by Lucinda Williams, inspired a vision that led to the creation of the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar and a level of improved financial stability for AWHQ.
After the World Headquarters closed, the Bazaar moved through a series of Austin venues, including Cherry Creek Plaza, the Austin Opry House, the Austin Music Hall, and the Austin Convention Center, before finding a home at the Palmer Events Center. Through five decades, Armadillo has continued to honor its original mission, celebrating Austin's rich musical and artistic heritage, and now in its 50th season, the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar remains one of Austin's longest-running and most cherished cultural events.
The Bazaar swept the 2024 Austin American-Statesman Community Choice Awards—taking home Best Local Event, Best Festival/Fair, and Best Local Tourist/Seasonal Attraction—underscoring lasting impact on Austin's cultural landscape. And in a city famed for its countless festivals, the Austin Business Journal ranked the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar as the 16th highest-attended festival, cementing its place among the very biggest events in town. For more information about the Bazaar, visit ArmadilloBazaar.com, and check out the Armadillo YouTube page for exclusive conversations with artists, musicians and Armadillo champions here.
About the Team
Bruce Willenzik, Executive Producer
Bruce Willenzik moved to Austin in May of 1972. By October, he had started in the music business, first working with Brazos Valley's Saturday Night Songster, Mance Lipscomb, and later at the Armadillo World Headquarters (AWHQ). There, an offhand comment by friend and confidant, Lucinda Williams, inspired him to a vision of a warm, dry, and thriving arts market under the Armadillo roof for Christmas, complete with enough cash flow potential to pull AWHQ through the hard winter. Due to dire financial necessity, Armadillo Productions began the show in 1976. Bruce took over the Bazaar after AWHQ closed in 1981 and has been Executive Producer ever since. Bruce's years of service on various City of Austin boards, commissions, and task forces was instrumental in building the foundation of the cultural and economic success that Austin enjoys today. Bruce retired from community service in December of 2017 after having served on the Austin Arts Commission since 1989 and the Austin Downtown Commission since 2000. He was Chair of the New Airport Terminal Task Force to develop the local identity theme at Bergstrom International Airport. In 1993, he was the recipient of the first Peacemaker of Austin Award for providing the philosophy that ended the arts wars and opened the way for a new era of cultural prosperity for Austin.
Anne Johnson, Producer and General Manager
Anne grew up immersed in the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar—her parents have worked the event since the 1980s—and in 2010 she officially joined the production team after mastering every on-site role, from flyer distribution (age 5) to booth decorating (age 15) and box office management (age 20). Today, as Producer & General Manager, she now directs strategic vision, artist and musician curation, marketing strategy, sponsorship development, and logistics for 200+ exhibitors, 30+ staff and 40,000+ annual attendees. A former Art Alliance Austin board member and Texas State University alumna (B.A. in Communication Studies), Anne blends deep Bazaar expertise with visionary leadership. With Bruce Willenzik passing the torch, Anne is dedicated to upholding the Bazaar's rich heritage while guiding its evolution into the future.
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Armadillo Christmas Bazaar
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