The surface is always changing...

"What is the surface that I will be chalking on today?"  It seems like a fairly simple and minor question, but to a street painter, it is very important.  I have been chalking for years, and have completed many street paintings.  I enjoy the challenge that each new piece of art and each new surface presents.  It's part of what keeps it fresh and different.

Sometimes the surface is rough asphalt.  A common practice in Florida is to mix in pieces of shell, which makes it even harder to chalk on, since the chalk doesn't like to stick to shell or large chunks of rock.

This is a typical asphalt road in Florida with shells mixed in.

And sometimes it is just bumpy.  Sealing it (albeit temporarily) with a wash of tempera & water, helps the chalk stick.  It makes the colors brighter, also.

This was one of the roughest, bumpiest surfaces I have chalked on.  The picture was taken at the end of the day, and you can see how the low sun shows all the bumps in shadow.

Smooth concrete is nice to work on, but it to can present some challenges too.  It can have a sharp "tooth" to it, that can rip your fingers or gloves to shreds.  Usually, it is a better canvas because it is white or light gray, so you don't have to put down the tempera paint as a base.  Occasionally it can be too smooth, which the paint would then be needed.

And sometimes you end up with a line or crack right down the middle of your art.  The best thing to do with this is either make it part of the art, or try to fill it with chalk so it "disappears".

Bricks or paver bricks are a challenge because of all the cracks that have to be filled with chalk.  When I worked on the pavers in Curacao, I broke a lot of sticks of chalk, trying to get it to cover.  The other problem with pavers, is that many times they will be different colors.  This may be pleasing to look at, but it can be a bear to work on.  The bricks are fabricated of different substances and they all take the chalk a bit differently, so you have to constantly adjust the pressure and amount of chalk applied. One thing to remember is the more porous the surface, the more chalk you will use.

Here you can see how rough the pavers were in Curacao.

The other end of the spectrum is a super smooth surface, like a polished granite or marble.  Even unfinished granite can be very difficult to work on.  Chalk just does not like to stick to it, and the tempera base is almost imperative.  The large pavers in Ireland were granite (below), and we were glad that we had brought paint to prime the area first.

You can see the outline of the large squares of granite in this overhead shot.

And lastly, when you get bored, start chalking your body!

Mercedes and Carmen start experimenting on themselves in Naples, Florida.  I think the heat got to them.

What Happens When It Rains?

Probably the number one question I get as a street painter.  Besides the obvious smart ass response "We get wet" is that it washes away.  And here's what happens to the art...

Washed out Madonna

After one night of rain, a days work is almost completely washed away.  This piece was 4' x 6' on concrete, and took about 6 hours to complete at the Italian Family Festa.  The original was intense with color and contrast, the results of layers of chalk.  But a wicked storm blew through Tallahassee in the middle of the night on Saturday and did a lot of damage.  There was a tent over the work, but it didn't help much. 

The day began rather dewy and damp, and it took awhile to get the layer of tempera paint to dry enough so I could start chalking.  It was so damp, I couldn't get the duct tape to stick for the border.  But we were lucky to have a relatively rain free day.

Here is the finished piece on Saturday. 

Madonna with child by Italian Renaissance Artist Guido Reni

There is no way to preserve or seal chalk on the street or sidewalk without changing the art.  It is what makes the art special.  It is but a fleeting flash of brilliance and beauty, like a colorful sunset or listening to a concert.  Enjoy the moment!  (Then take a picture and share it with all your friends on Facebook!)

Sarasota Video Interview

I was so excited to come across a video the other day on YouTube.  It was an interview that I had done at the Sarasota International Chalk Festival in 2010 with Don Guy.  He shot the raw footage and gave it to his students to edit.  Then, as I was just cruising through some videos, I noticed one pop up on the right in the suggested column.  This one is by Jessica Ungenheuer.  It had been posted about a month and a half earlier, but I came across it in early February 2012.  Click here to see the video.

Double Winner at Disney!!

I was very excited to win two awards at the Florida Chalk Artists Association event (Disney Festival of the Masters held every fall at Downtown Disney)!  I was surprised to win "Artist's Choice" from all my peers in the FCAA.  Plus I won the "Best Reproduction of an American Master".  My art was by Rick Timmons.  I found his website on the internet, and really wanted to do an animal picture, and he does a lot of horses.  Of all his works, I like this one best, and it worked well for the 7' x 7' square size we had to work with.  Because it was a 2 1/2 day event, I wanted to make sure I picked something with a lot of detail, and this one had it!

I also received my Maestre Certification from the FCAA. This took about 3 years for me to accomplish.  It requires that you participate as a solo artist in at least 15 events, win an award at Disney, win an award with 50+ artists, plus leading a workshop and also writing about street painting.

Many of my friends in the group won awards, also (Betty Dominguez, Jamie Schwerstein, Carolyn Shultz, among others).  Go to the FCAA website to see pictures of most of the winners.  The high school teams impress me every year, too!  Lots of talent!

Thanks, Minnie!

Feast of Little Italy 2011

 A traditional Italian masterpiece was the inspiration for this detail from a painting by Antonio da Correggio.  I got a lot done on Saturday at the Feast of Little Italy in Abacoa Town Center in Jupiter.  This was my first year at this festival, and it was great!  The only downside was the heavy rain that came down on Saturday night.  It started as we were pulling the plastic over the work, around 6:30pm, and was so wet that we couldn't really seal it with the duct tape fast enough.  Then a fence fell on the plastic, ripping a hole in the middle which allowed more water to damage the work.

It took about 3 hours to dry out the piece and reconstruct the damaged areas on Sunday morning.  I pushed hard to finish by sundown, and just made it (even with the time change).  The best thing was all the wonderful comments from viewers, with some saying that it was so beautiful, they were almost moved to tears.  This is what art is all about - to evoke strong emotions in the viewers!

First Time Chalking at National Harvest Festival

I was honored to be invited to be a featured artist at the National Harvest Festival at Silver Dollar City, in Branson, MO this fall.  My first piece on Opening Weekend was the logo with two "additions" of kids chalking.  It looks like they are actually chalking the logo on the ground, giving it a 3D look.

Then I started this 3D reproduction of a Norman Rockwell piece that was originally from a Saturday Evening Post cover.  This pieces was about 6' wide x 10' tall and took 3 days to complete.

Then I got washed out during the next two days.  I was attempting this piece by A. Rodriguez but each day the rain started about midday, and I couldn't work anymore.  The rivers of water that started to come through made me think I should rename this piece "A River Runs Through It"

Next I worked on this piece, another Norman Rockwell piece.  This was about 10' wide x 8' high and took 3 days, (2 days chalking, one rainy day that was spent trying to preserve it until I could finish it).

Then I worked on this piece for two days, another smaller Norman Rockwell piece.  It was about 5' across x 8' high.  I put a lot of time into the details and even added a border/frame around the outside.

 I am looking forward to going back up in October and working from October 19 - 29, 2011.  I have two 3D pieces planned, one is an interactive carousel horse that kids can sit in and have their picture taken.

First Art Chalk Walk in Buffalo!

The quaint town of Buffalo, Wyoming held it's very first chalk event on August 3, 2011.  Artists, both young and old, came to town to create works of art on the sidewalk down Main Street for the first (and hopefully not last) time.

I started about 9 am on my area right outside the front door of the Chamber of Commerce.  They were very excited to have me there.  I worked all day, with a short break for lunch and a short rain sprinkle around 1pm.  Finished this piece around 7pm.  Size is 6' x 8', and the original art is by Terry Kelly Moyers.  I loved the cheerfulness and color of this piece, and everyone loved it too.  Weather was warm, people were great!  The event was put together by Marie Verger and the Buffalo Downtown Assoc., and they did a great job!

Buffalo Chamber of Commerce.

Deer in the am on Main Street.

Starting on Wednesday morning.

Finished piece at around 7pm.

Looking forward to coming back next year, and staying longer!  Click here to see video.

It's a Winner at the Disney Festival of the Masters!

I was very excited to win the "Best Portraiture/Figurative Award" at the Disney/FCAA Festival of the Masters street painting competition on November 12-14, 2010.  I chose to reproduce a photo titled Natural History by Lithium Picnic that I found on DeviantArt.  It was not only rich and gorgeous, but it also had a fall type theme.  This event is an invitational for FCAA members, and does not allow 3D or cartoon works.  The finished piece was about 6'x7' done directly on concrete with only chalk in about 19 hours (2 days).  I experimented with using Eternity Chalks for the light colors, and really liked the way they covered the surface. 

We started on Friday morning, and I was pretty much finished by 5pm on Saturday.  Judging was moved up to 10am on Sunday, so everyone was doing last minute touchups.  Luckily the weather was great and we didn't have to worry about rain.  I was under an acorn tree that kept pelting us, but I was grateful for the shade.

I also received my Qualificato Certification from the Florida Chalk Artist Association (FCAA).  There was one other who received the Qualificato (second level) and two who received the Semplice Certification (first level).

Chalk Festival brings together artists from Florida to Italy

The First International Chalk Festival in Sarasota brought together artists from across the U.S. and Europe.  The level of artistry was amazing, and encompassed both three large 3D works, and also the traditional madonnari style street paintings.  The 3D paintings started a couple days ahead of the weekend event.  Each work was completed by a team of 3-5 artists.  They began by laying down paint and then going in to add details with chalk, as the crowds waited in line to stand at the apex of the work so they could view it in the correct perspective.  The traditional chalk artists (my daughter and I included), started VERY early Saturday morning - 6:30 am - before dawn's early light!  We used some white tempera on certain areas of our work, because the asphalt was very black.  Some artists blocked in large areas with colored tempera, which I think is kind of cheating.  I prefer to have all the color done in chalk.

This was the first time I had done a "recognizable figure", as I usually do reproductions of master paintings or my own photos and designs.  This picture was from an original painting by Alex Ross for the 70th Anniversary of The Wizard of Oz.  People really connected with this character and I can't tell you how many times I heard "I'll get you my pretty".  It was popular with all ages, too, as both seniors and young children recognized the character.

We worked til dusk on Saturday.  It got really hot (in the 90's) and most of the artists really slowed down in the middle of the day.  I was in total sun from 10am - 6pm.  Sunday we got back to work around 8am.  Both Carmen and I finished about midday (about 2pm for me).  Sunday was also very hot, which was why I was trying to get done earlier in the day.  As you can see from the photo at the left, there were a lot of people in costume both days.  Attendance was great, much better than last year, probably about 30,000 each day??? 

Judging was around 3pm, but the awards presentation wasn't until 6pm, so we had to wait around.  The best thing about the festival was getting to connect with so many other artists who all have the same passion.