Pasadena Chalk Festival 2023 Day 2

We're having a blast at the Pasadena Chalk Festival! We've been so busy though getting our own murals completed that we haven't had much time to go around and see everyone else's chalk art! 

Now that we're wrapped up though, let's go explore the rest of the festival. 

Note, this isn't meant to be a complete look at every picture (that'll be a separate post).

Theresa did a great job finding us a hotel this year. We're closer than ever to the Pasadena Chalk Festival. It's just across the street and not even a block away. If it would have been hotter, I could see us coming back to the room for mid-day breaks, but luckily even though it was sunny, it wasn't sweltering. 

Let's start with our chalk neighbors and go out from there. We just happened to be right beside 2022 Best in Festival Artist Karla Navarro. Her work is gorgeous. 

And on the other side of us is Leo Aguirre. He does some pretty incredible chalk art, but his paintings really shine. I'll show that towards the end of this post. It's pretty amazing what he created this year. 

I met Jennica as I was standing in line to check in for the festival on Thursday. She's doing a giant Spider-Man mural! It's 11 feet wide by 6.5 feet tall!

Sarah Flores has done some great work, including a Best in Chalk of Fame in past years. This is her 20th year participating! And I love her mural this year. Growing up, who didn't love Short Round from Indiana Jones. And seeing him again, nearly 40 years later in Everything Everywhere All at Once. Love it! 

Our friend Curt is doing Benny from A Lego Movie! Space Ship! He's looking great, even with that cracked helmet and scratched label on the front. 

Oh my. Charlotte has chosen a giant Barbie mural featuring Margot Robbie looking into a mirror and seeing the original Barbie reflection. She said she needed a really big space to make it, pushing into Curt's Lego mural just a little. 

What a fun sun! And how are you sitting and drawing like that? 

And excellent look at the Lorax. 

Leslie Lopez is dedicating this one to her cat, who is a black cat, but would be green if it had the option. She said lots of photographers were asking to photograph her chalk boxes too. 

Ooh. The Sandlot. The Beast is facing off with Benny "The Jet" Rodriguez. In between them is a real baseball. I asked if it had "Babe Ruth" printed on the ball, but was told no. Aww, you've got to add it! 

I adore Calvin and Hobbes. In my mind, they are a good pre-cursor to Phineas and Ferb (one of my favorite cartoons). Both try to seize the day and are incredibly creative. 

And of course it's Manny! We chalked with him in front of ABC7! While we were there, I asked if he was going to draw Calvin and Hobbes again for the festival. He said he was. I asked if he'd be adding any other characters. Susie Derkins, Spaceman Spiff, etc. 

When I saw him today at the festival he said that I had inspired him to do a second mural with Calvin's parents (specifically his dad for Father's Day). 

I couldn't love it more. Great idea Manny. 

Alli had to have a picture next to this Narwhal. The shadows were a little rough, but I'll have a better photo later. 

Jamie Leake always has something punny and clever. This year we have Counting Sheep. On the blackboard are all sorts of math/sheep puns. Woolgebra, Ewe-niversal Constants, Occam's Shaver, Baah-culus? EWE=MC2. 

He put out a call for sheep math puns on Facebook and one of mine made the cut! (b+a)^2 = ba + ba + bb + aa. 

Alli adored this giant Snorlax Pokemon. 

A beautiful entry from brand new chalk artist Kotono Ogihara. 

Ooh, I bet that cat just can't wait to knock down the Christmas ornaments. 

As I made my way back around, I was told they had found a pen and now had a signed Babe Ruth baseball! Perfect! 

Aww. Goofy is a good dad. 

Through a camera lens these pixelated drawings come together. In person everything blends together and it's harder to see the overall image. Looks really good though!

Cast members from Disneyland paying tribute to a fellow cast member who recently passed away. 

Who doesn't love a drive along the coast. 

Stephen Arnold making a portrait of Walt Disney. 

Arlou Somo has chosen the Archangel as his inspiration. 

And I don't know what the odds are, but right beside him, our first chalk teacher, Randall Williams chose the same Archangel pose, but in a different style. Both look great. 

Jazlyn Jacobo has impressed me year after year with her Disney drawings. This is another year that is shaping up to be amazing. 

Artists Kayla Garcia and Charlotte Scoville getting interviewed during the festival. Kayla told how she had a scholarship interview and showed the interviewers a timelapse of one of her chalk drawings. They must have been impressed because the got the scholarship! 

Time to pull up tape? Charlotte must be done!

Another great year Charlotte!

And Benny looks fantastic Curt!

Of course We Wants the Redhead!

Wow! I didn't get to see this work in progress by Kayla Garcia. I hope she posts a timelapse video of her making it. It's amazing. Theresa said that the eyes, you can see the malice in them. 

Alli asking if this was May from Pokemon. It wasn't, but the kids still liked it. 

An original creation, but I can see some of my favorite Disney villain Hades in there. 

The colors on this One-Punch Man are so vibrant. Well done. 

And speaking of amazing colors, this is another well done mural. 

Our fellow ABC7 chalk artist Shirley Alonso. 

These desert colors are so vibrant. 

Jessie and Matthew Silva have drawn this African elder along with an African proverb that says "A village without the elderly is like a well without water."

The chalk was just going down so amazingly smooth I had to take a closer look and ask some questions. What technique are they using? 

Jessie told me they put down a base of drywall compound on the ground and invited me to feel the difference between the rough pavement and the smooth compound. What a huge difference! It's been a few days since the festival and my fingers are still a little numb from rubbing chalk into the pavement. This would have been so much better! 

What a great movie. I love the tribute to A Goofy Movie and Powerline. 

Had to do a double-take on this one. Where before the blotted appearance was shadows from the trees, this time they are drawn directly into the mural. Gorgeous. 

The newest Little Mermaid by Jaslie Ulloa, who won for Best Technique last year. 

Whoa! A full-size R2-D2!

Okay, so to be honest, I thought this year, Ruston and I had a shot at winning "Best Use of Color" for our Splash Mountain poster. Then I saw this. Wow. It's stunning. So vibrant. 

One of Ruston's favorite artists, Cliff Creates. 

First time chalk artist Anthony Vukojevich paying tribute to the many animals that can be found around the Pasadena area. I thought it had Country Bear Jamboree vibes. I love it! 

Anthony also told me that he didn't love his original sketch of the raccoon, so he took a picture of the Raccoon stuffed animal that Ian and Alli had sitting out and tried to base it on that instead! 

Sarah has pushed through all the distractions (sorry Sarah) and is almost complete! Her husband and two kids also came to help with the background! Love it when everyone gets to participate. 

Looking forward to hanging out more next year Sarah! 

Bianca is going in a different direction this year and attempting to recreate a painting of the Madonna. Looking good Bianca!

3D murals were not as prevalent this year, but this one by Julio Jimenez looked great! Aztec Laptop Zoom call to the Sun god. 

Always impressive Shuji Nishimu. 

Which leads me right into the different paintings that each artist submits.

For new artists, the first year of the festival costs a reasonable $35 registration fee. Every year after that is completely free. You're supplied chalks, drinks, an artist dinner and snacks throughout the day. The only thing that is asked for is an original canvas that they can auction off to raise money for the Lightbringer Project. 

This silent auction style bidding allows you to pick up art from your favorite artists at an affordable price. 

And there's so much variety that you'll find something you like. 

Alright, I promised you something amazing from our chalk neighbor Leo Aguirre. His painting actually floats in midair and spins! Every year he tries to outdo himself with his paintings and every year he succeeds. His paintings have won "Best in Silent Auction" every year that I can remember, this one bringing in $600 for the Lightbringer Project. 

We weren't around for the final bidding when of the silent auction, when some painting get multiple bidders in a frenzy trying to acquire a certain piece, but I know that Theresa's National Park Service mural went for at least $100. 

And my Patriotic Mickey went for at least $150! 

Just because I wanted to, I painted a second canvas to auction off that was related to the mural we did at the festival. I wasn't going to recreate the entire poster again in miniature, so instead I painted one of the signs I always like seeing along the queue as you enter the ride. You May Get Wet sold for at least $55. 

Festival awards came and went. The kids loved clapping for all the winners. Alli got so excited for them and made us write each one down so that we could go around afterwards and see them. It's been another great year of chalk at the festival. 

Finished! See you next year!

Thank you to the hotel staff and everyone else for being so encouraging! The kids had an awesome time and are really looking forward to coming back next year!

I'll have a couple more posts coming with a look at all the different murals, plus a timelapse of our work this year.