How a scrappy holiday art party became one of Austin’s most enduring traditions.
In Austin, traditions rarely stay traditional for long. They shape-shift, sprawl, and pick up a little patina along the way—just like the city itself. But every holiday season, tucked along Airport Boulevard, one ritual remains reliably, unmistakably Austin: the Blue Genie Art Bazaar.
What began in 2001 as a Christmas gathering inside the cavernous workshop of Blue Genie Art Industries—half party, half pop-up—has grown into a six-week institution that draws tens of thousands of shoppers hunting for gifts with soul. This year marks the Bazaar’s 25th anniversary, a milestone that even its founders admit feels a bit surreal.
“We started this for fun,” recalls co-founder Kevin Collins. “And somehow, after twenty-five years, it’s still fun.”
Collins, along with fellow artists Chris Coakley, Rory Skagen, and Dana Younger, built the Bazaar around a simple idea: if people could meet the makers behind their holiday gifts, maybe the season would feel a little more human. Two and a half decades later, that ethos still holds. Step through the doors at 6100 Airport Blvd, and you’re met with a familiar Austin mashup—ceramics glazed in colors only dreamed up in a backyard kiln, hand-poured candles, letterpress prints, wild jewelry, wearable art, gourmet treats, and more than 200 local artists’ interpretation of what makes a gift meaningful.
A Holiday Market with a Pulse
While national big-box stores have long since figured out how to standardize December, Blue Genie has doubled down on the opposite: the delightfully unpredictable. The Bazaar is curated, but only in the way Austin itself is curated—organized chaos with a creative heartbeat. It’s the kind of place where you’ll go in looking for a gift for your aunt and walk out having discovered a ceramic armadillo lamp you suddenly can’t live without.
Open daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. (with a Christmas Eve close at 6 p.m.), the Bazaar feels as much like a communal gathering as a market. Admission and parking, true to form, remain free.
Donut Tuesdays: A Blue Genie-Style Anniversary Present
To honor its quarter-century mark, Blue Genie is adding something new in 2025: Donut Tuesdays. At 10 a.m. sharp, while supplies last, shoppers can snag a free, fresh donut from the snack bar. “Because who doesn’t love a donut?” asks Skagen, as if the question needs answering. It isn’t gimmicky—it’s just Blue Genie being Blue Genie, another small reminder that holiday shopping can feel whimsical instead of obligatory.
Give a Gift, Grant a Wish
The Bazaar isn’t only about supporting artists. For 14 years, Blue Genie has partnered with Make-A-Wish Central & South Texas, raising more than $80,000 to help fuel life-changing experiences for local children with critical illnesses. Shoppers can join in by rounding up their purchase at checkout—an effortless way to turn an everyday gift into something bigger.
Shopping, At Home
For those who prefer to skirt the seasonal crowds, Blue Genie offers year-round online shopping, complete with in-store pickup and nationwide shipping. Their “Ask a Genie” personal shopper service—part concierge, part matchmaking—takes the guesswork out of gifting. Fill out a short form about the person you’re shopping for, and a human (not an algorithm) will send back curated options, photos included. They’ll even wrap your final picks for free.
Blue Genie’s Airport Boulevard home is wheelchair-accessible, CapMetro-friendly, and maintains its laid-back ethos even on the busiest December weekends.
After 25 years, the Bazaar hasn’t lost its charm. It has grown, of course—Austin demands it—but at its core, it’s still what it was in 2001: a place to slow down, wander the aisles, discover something unexpected, and remember that the best holiday gifts usually come with a story attached.
