Chalking with the Locals in Buffalo

This was my second time chalking in Buffalo, but the first time working with local artists.  Marie Verger, the organizational force behind the festival, was able to encourage two artists to participate.  Jenny Wuerker, a landscape painter with a gallery in town, and Steve Heil, the local high school art teacher, were my assistants for the day, and did a fantastic job!

Jenny Wuerker, Jennifer Chaparro, lead artist, and Steve Heil.

We started at 8:00 am in the morning.  It took about an hour and a half to get the art set up and the tempera paint down, and transfer the design with the template.  Here is Steve getting the tempera down with a roller.  I was sweating already, as temperatures were in the mid 80's before 10 am.

Steve finishes up the tempera layer.

We were making pretty good time, until about 1:30pm, and the rain started.  We watched it come in, and had two tents up, but had to scramble to get the plastic and tarp down over the art.  At first, it looked like it would be a minor shower, and then move on.  But it kept raining, and then it started running down the sloped parking lot and down the cracks in the concrete.  It lasted about an hour, and we quickly pulled off the plastic to minimize damage and get it to dry as quickly as possible.

Steve and I hold down the plastic, and wait for the rain to stop.

We jumped back on it, and really work hard to get the piece done in one day.  The sun came back out and it got pretty hot again, so we were glad we had the tents.  The size of the art was about 12' wide by 20' long, so that you could sit on the horse in the picture. 

Jenny and I work on the colt and try to figure out the tangle of legs.

Jenny typically works with paint, and had never used pastels before, so this was all new to her.  The technique of layering the chalk takes a little bit of getting used to, I have to admit.  I think it is similar to watercolors, since you need to put down lighter colors first.  Lighter colors are hard to make dense and pure when layered on top of dark areas.

And collaborating is always a bit difficult.  I am used to working with my daughters, but I know their skills well, and what they do best.  The challenge here was to assess what each of us could bring to the art and direct it to it's best use.  I think both Jenny and Steve have a new appreciation for how hard it is to complete something of this size so quickly and the challenges of the weather and surface.  I hope the experience didn't scare them off from doing more street painting in the future!

Students Get Creative in Curacao at Third Annual Chalk Festival

The third annual "Colors of Willemstad" took place last weekend in Curacao.  I did three workshops with the teenagers both in Curacao and also in Bonaire (the next island over).  I wish I had more time with them, as they were very interested in how to do 3D paintings.

Craig Thomas and I quickly did this 3D apple to show the kids how to grid out and fill in the art.

The kids jumped in to draw their own picture and try their hand at creating a 3D apple.

Some of the kids at the workshop in Bonaire.

And my art, which I started on Friday.  The art was 5 meters by 6 meters.  I put down the tempera paint and then sketched out the art.

It was pretty dry during the week, so we didn't need to cover the art at night.  I chalked all day Saturday and Sunday, and got some help from my friend, Marieke.  Here is her work - very creative!

And this is my finished work - 5 meters x 6 meters - one of my largest.

Here is one of the student team's art - one of the three winners!  They were my students last year and they did a very detailed piece - great job!

This is another piece by one of the students from this year's workshop - also a winner!

Check out the new video: 

18th Annual Lake Worth Street Painting Festival

The forecast was not good.  Rain, wind, and thunderstorms.  Gloomy weather was with us all weekend, but we made it through.  It was windy all weekend, and we had a short period of showers from 9 - 10 am on Saturday morning.  We were all raring to go, and it was hard to stand around and wait.  Most of us had plastic to cover, and the rain was light enough that we were able to uncover and start working fairly quickly.

Plastic and folding chairs save the day.

End of day on Saturday.

My piece, an original composition of a three headed dragon coming up out of a hole in the ground, was my largest piece yet at this event (10' x 20').  It was also a first for a 3D piece for me at this event.  I usually do much more traditional work.

View from the opposite direction.

Carmen working on Sunday.

Carmen was able to participate this year, at the last minute.  She choose to do a Bouguereau on an area that was about 6' x 8'.  She didn't finish, but it was beautiful none the less, and was a big crowd pleaser.  

Cheryl and Wayne Renshaw brought a three headed dragon puppet, which looks like lunch in this photo.

I actually finished earlier than I thought I would.  I was worried I couldn't finish it by myself, but I was done by about 2pm on Sunday (total of 16 hours work).

The crowds were often lined up to take pictures and view the art from the "sweet spot".  I often heard comments from the crowd that this art would make an awesome tattoo and that I should be a tattoo artist.  Maybe someday - you never know.  If you had told me I would be chalking the streets at age 50 for a living when I was 20, I would have thought you were nuts.

Here is the video - Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Art) by Craig Houdeshell: