The 2025 Parade will be on Saturday June 21, 2025 Summer Solstice Parade began in 1974, as a birthday celebration for a popular artist and mime named Michael Gonzales. From these humble beginnings arose a celebration like no other. Today, the Summer Solstice Celebration has evolved into creative and original display of floats, giant puppets, whimsical costumes and masks of more than 1,000 parade p
articipants, of all ethnic and economic backgrounds. Floats are created by artists & community members every year during our 2 month long art workshop. All floats are human powered in the parade (no animals or motorized vehicles). There is also dancing, music, drumming and drama that enthralls the spectators. Each year there is an annual artistic competition for the Solstice T-shirt and Poster design that is sold as a fundraising vehicle for the event. The Parade and Festival has grown into the largest arts event in Santa Barbara County, drawing crowds of over 100,000 spectators from around the world. Our mission statement is simply "a celebration of life through art." As a 501(c)3, non-profit, community organization, the Summer Solstice Celebration group is responsible for carrying on Michael’s delightful, multicultural performing arts celebration, and ensuring an extravagant celebration of life, through art, for many years to come.
