This may be the first year in the history of the I Madonnari Chalk Painting Festival that I missed the actual festival. Merlie and I were on a three week 1200 mile road trip from Kentucky to DC on up to Boston. I hope to write more about that and share photos.
But I was grateful to make it to the Mission on Friday before the chalk paintings were seriously damaged by feet, paws, drizzle and tire tracks. Get over there while you can. Many others were sharing the experience, including tour buses full of visitors. Here are my photos of some that caught my eye.
The I Madonnari Festival is a fund raiser for the Children’s Creative Project, which is part of the County school system. More information below.
I was sorry to miss seeing my artist friends and some of the regular artists I photograph and talk to each year. Please see my article from last year where you can see more about these people.
On to the art!
Architect Tom Meaney was back again, creating another epic chalk painting of his family. He creates his own pigments, mixed with wax, giving extraordinary brilliance and subtlety to his painting. For the first time ever, his art was inside the roped off area at the bottom of the Mission steps.
In this image I have used the Photoshop Transform Tool to reframe my photo as if the art is being viewed from directly above. If you look at my full set of photos you can see the originals as well as the reframed images.
My former co-worker at the former Goleta Valley Voice Rod Tryon was back again with his patient skill creating another anamorphic wonder. For most large pieces there is a severe distortion of perspective that makes it impossible fully to appreciate the art. This anamorphic technique allows full appreciation for anyone who stands at the anamorphic focal point. I wish every large piece could be done this way. Unfortunately, it is a lot of extra work!
Here was another magnificent anamorphic piece. If you look at my full set of photos you can see how it looks from the side and the difference is dramatic!
Sharyn Chan is a friend for many years and she has been a tireless regular at I Madonnari for about as long as I have known her. Her art is always of epic scale and she works throughout the entire weekend to perfect it. But I think this may be her most amazing piece ever. I am impressed with the subtlety of the colors. And the creativity in her design. Look closely at the child’s hair.
Cecilia Linayao was back again with another grand piece.
Delphine I originally knew as one of my favorite swing dance partners. She was an art teacher at Laguna Blanca and now teaches in Los Angeles. In 2023 she created a magnificent grand piece, but indicated she may cut back on such large pieces here in the future. Fortunately for all of us, she did not keep her word!
Delphine was back with another grand design. This is probably my favorite piece this year. So creative and beautiful. A message to bring together humanity, Earth and the cosmos. And produced with subtlety of tones. Here is my original photo, which emphasizes the Earth. If you go to my full photo set you can see it as if viewed directly from above.
Phyllis Chiu is a fabric artist as well as a chalk artist. She has volunteered at the Solstice Workshop making costumes for many years. She even had the patience to teach me how to use the sewing machines to help out. While not an epic piece, her Miss Piggy Mona Lisa made me smile.
There is no way for me to feature every amazing art piece here in this article. But I will post some more of my favorites below. But first, this photo of a Mission Catholic Church procession that took place as I was there.
Finally, this page gives the history of what I Madonnari is all about. The entire event is a fund raiser for the Children’s Creative Project, a nonprofit arts education program of the Santa Barbara County Education Office. The Project serves 50,000 children in more than 100 schools with visual and performing arts workshops and performances throughout Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. https://ccp.sbceo.org/i-madonnari/welcome
– Robert Bernstein
