It's here! The 2022 Pasadena Chalk Festival! After 3 years of not meeting in person due to Covid, things are finally getting back to normal!
This year Ruston and I are Mouseketeers! I'm a bright, shiny, classic Mouseketeer, while Ruston is a Millennial Mouseketeer.
Alright, let's get started with 2022!
We rolled up to the Paseo Colorado right at 7:15am and people are already hard at work! We unloaded all the chalk gear we've gathered over the years, and Ruston parked the car nearby.
Our spot looks just how we left it last night. Perfect! It is a little spotty though. Definitely could use a second coat of white on it.
I don't want to go putting shoe marks all over this clean white surface, so I lost the shoes, and walked around in socks, while I added a second coat of white tempera to the center area. We're running a bit low, so we'll have to stretch this stuff.
That's going to need a few minutes to dry, so let's go for a walk.
It's always nice that the organizers have breakfast lined up for us each year. Bagels and cream cheese, lots of fruit, granola bars, pineapple juice and coffee.
Going to the headquarters for the event, and picking up our artist t-shirts, badges, and chalk. It's great that they have so many volunteers to help out with the event. From organizing with the Paseo Mall, Fire Department, Sound and Lighting, tables, umbrellas for each spot, all the sponsors, etc. There's so much that goes into putting on an event like this.
I learned that they actually work with a local college and volunteers can earn credits by working with them as they learn about "Event Planning". That's really cool!
Other artists have started getting their base coats down.
Spray chalk! Wow! That's one way to fill in the rough concrete surface here at the Paseo.
Hey! I recognize those two!
Charlotte Scoville has done so many of my favorites from past years. I'm curious what she'll be making this year.
And Curt von Badinski, her husband, is ambitiously working on two murals this year! Ooh, I like what I'm seeing! Johnny 5! On the spot next to him, is a sign that says to come back tomorrow to watch the chalk painting robot! That's something I'll definitely have to bring the kids to see. It sounds just like one of the YouTube channels they like to watch, like Stuff Made Here, and Mark Rober.
The silent auction tables have started getting set up. I see Ruston's round Mickey Mouse Club canvas standing out clearly.
A closer look at Ruston's masterpiece.
Along with a few hidden things that you only notice if you stop long enough to look closely.
Alright! The tempera on the pavement has dried and we're ready to get started! I have my camera taped to the light pole up above, taking shots every 5 seconds so I can hopefully have a nice time-lapse at the end of all this. Next, we'll put down our life-size printout and trace an outline of our mural.
But first an inspection of the area. This gal had somehow found her way onto the pavement and was almost squished! I moved her over to a planter (not the one from last night!) so hopefully she'll be more comfortable there.
Boom! Done! That's a wrap! Call it a day!
This one always turns heads when it goes from nothing to completed in just a few minutes. It's black and white, but it's not too bad. Ruston and I quickly chalked the back with black chalk (DIY carbon paper) then traced everything out.
Ruston is working the Millennial side.
While I am working the Original side.
Time to start on the black chalk. We've got a lot of black sections of Mickey, but as I soon learned, not all the black chalk is the same! The chalk we've collected over the years is the dark black stick on top, while the sticks it is laying on is the black chalk from this year. It's a lighter shade. Since we're going for big patches of all one color, we had to pick out everything from this year and put it to the side.
Ooh, with the black chalk things are really starting to pop! We made sure to work from the inside out, trying to be as complete as we could. It's going to be difficult to get to stretch and get back into the center again.
Ha. Mickey ears shadow.
While Ruston likes to work with a strip of foam to blend things together, I opt for using my fingers. It does get really messy though.
Mickey has a notch taken out of his ear because "he's seen some things." It reminds me of Stitch, who has similar notches in his ears. And those cracks in the pavement go right through his eyes. Cause we planned it like that... Yeah, sure we did.
And that looks like a great stopping point! Let's do lunch!
The janitors here are doing a great job keeping the restrooms clean. I know my hands are quite dirty!
Since we're here, might as well stop by the old silent auction and see how Ruston's canvas is doing. It's got bids! Already up to $45! Nice to see effort be appreciated.
It's unfortunate that so many of the businesses nearby have closed up. Thank goodness we still have Rubio's Fresh Mexican Grill here.
They've got tasty food, but even better unlimited soda refills! Even though it's one of the better weather days for the festival, it's still hot and I'm parched!
Today is going great so far for our mural! We'll pick up part 2 next!
What an early Saturday morning start! Spray chalk...never heard of that! The red on Ruston's canvas really stood out on the table...easy to see from the distance...but close-ups are needed for that hidden Mickey (nice touch!) Very considerate to the bee for placing it in the "cleaner" planter :-) Just when we thought black chalk was black chalk...now there are varying shades of black...good thing you all had lots of the darker black shade. That photo you took from inside Rubio's where the window overlooks part of a festival is unusual...the haziness caused by the bright sunlight makes the window view look like a painting itself...had to do a double-take initially! Looks like the mural is off to a good start...a well-deserved lunch break to recharge. EOM
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