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.

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: 

Colors of Willemstad International Street Painting Festival

Captain Hook & Peter Pan in 3D on the Handelskad.

This was the second year for "The Colors of Willemstad" and was put on by Dutch Dream.  Five artists, including me, were brought in to give workshops and chalk during the event.  Since I had a long narrow area to work with, I tried to look for art that was sea themed and would fit the area.  I found this picture on the internet, and was an original painting credited to an artist named Invernalia.  Piece was 10 feet across by 30 feet long and took about 22 hours (3 days) to complete and was my largest piece to date.  I put down a layer of tempera paint as the base, but it was all done in chalk.  It was tough on the paver bricks and it used up most of my green and grey chalk!  The heat wasn't too bad until Sunday afternoon when the sun came out full force. 

The crowd was made up of local Dutch and native islanders, plus cruise ship vacationers.  The city has a port that docks at least one, sometimes two large ships every day.  They speak 4 different languages on the island, which sometimes made communication a little difficult, but we managed. 

Luckily I had worked early and late the days before and took advantage of the cooler times of the day.  The steady breeze off the water was also nice.  Because I was next to the main "drag", there was a constant slow flow of cars going past me, many with people hanging out the windows, giving me the thumbs up sign!  Craig was very busy taking both still photos and video footage of all of the artists during the event and the workshops and all the other performing artists.  Click here to see video.

Before the event on the weekend, I gave two workshops to the local artists and high school kids.  It was great - everyone was excited to get started chalking.  I was impressed with how many talented kids there were at this school, and with their art teacher, Ailsa Anastatia.  We met so many great people that were very warm and welcoming, that we hope to return again soon.