Chalk Art Street Fair Brings Art to the Public

Longmont's inaugural  Chalk Art Street Fair & Bin Market on Longs Peak Ave is a free two-day street-painting festival where more than 38 artists will turn the streets of Longmont into a canvas of chalk art. To promote this event around town and give folks who attend something to take home, the organizing team ordered die cut rectangle stickers that feature art from four of the headline artists. This weekend of public art creates a unique cityscape venue for artists, vendors and visitors alike to enjoy art, live music and local artisan vendors for a fun family gathering. There will be a special food-and-wine dinner on Saturday evening hosted by Bin 46 Wine Bar & Restaurant. Folks will be walking the streets and watching art while it's being made--quite the interactive experience. On the sticker, you can see the work of Bryce Widom - Artist (brycewidom.com); Mario Olvera - Instructor/Facilitator (?mistermario.myportfolio.com); John Cross - Front Range CC Instructor (johncrossart.com); Grace Gutierrez - Artist (gracegutierrezart.com). One look over at the event website turns up a great history of chalk art write, here's a quick sample:

The Longmont Chalk Art Street Fair follows street painting traditions that originated in 16th century Renaissance Italy when artists began transforming asphalt into canvas using chalk. The artists were called “madonnari,” after their customary practice of recreating chalk paintings of the Madonna. Historically, madonnari were known for their life of travel and freedom, making their living from coins received from passers-by.

Check out their site to learn more, but fast forward a few centuries, and chalk art festivals are kicking off all over. Artists are bringing new ideas and techniques to streets all over with "Complicated images of traditional master-style works, modern pieces and surreal chalk art creations." You can also learn about street painting on their site, where they break down the process in great detail. Because it's live art, there's a great interaction with the crowd, and since the community is getting together, StickerGiant is there to help promote local initiatives.