America's 1st International Street-Painting Festival Brings 250 Artists From Around the World to Downtown Sarasota

SARASOTA, Fla., Oct. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Never before has such talent in street-painting come together into one location in America, until now for the Sarasota Chalk Festival.  More than 250 street-painters from the United States, Italy, Germany, Mexico, Netherlands and Slovenia will work on their hands and knees for two days along South Pineapple Avenue in Historic Burns Square to create masterpieces that are all the more magnificent for their vulnerable, short-lived beauty. In its third season the Sarasota Chalk Festival anticipates 40,000 visitors along a seven-block stretch of downtown Sarasota on October 30 and 31, 2010, from 8 a.m. to midnight.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20101012/FL80777 )

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20101012/FL80777 )

Every year since its inception, the Sarasota Chalk Festival has grown in the number of artists participating and the attendees who gather to watch innovative works of art come to life. This year, when "Maestro Madonnaro" Edgar Mueller from Germany accepted an invitation to create one of his oversized 3-D illusions for the first time in the United States, it generated a huge buzz on the art scene.  Within a month, artists from all over the world had contacted the Sarasota Chalk Festival, requesting to participate.

Along with Mueller, who will create a one-of-a-kind painting that stretches 82 feet (the entire width of the street), and which appears to change as day turns to night, notable artists such as Tracy Lee Stum, Leon Keer, Henry Darnell, Lori Escalara and others are on the list of featured artists.

About Sarasota Chalk Festival

All proceeds from the Sarasota Chalk Festival benefit Avenida de Colores, Inc., a 501c(3) non-profit organization that provides students with experiences and instruction in the visual and performing arts, and enriches the community with cultural events. For more information, contact Denise Kowal, Event Chair, at 941-374-4790 or visit the website at www.chalkfestival.com.

Grapevine Communications is a full-service, award-winning advertising, marketing and public relations firm based in Sarasota, Florida, and serving clients nationwide. The firm was recently awarded the 2010 Frank G. Berlin, Sr., Small Business Award by the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce. For more information on Grapevine Communications, contact Jamie M. Smith at 941-351-0024 or email [email protected]

SOURCE Sarasota Chalk Festival