We’ve seen a bunch of new and creative events unfold in the city this summer including a Dragon Boat race and a giant Yoga gathering. Now we can chalk up one more event that should prove to be very interesting and an unusual draw to to downtown Buffalo. Supporters of the 500 block of Main Street are hosting the inaugural ChalkFest on August 11th and 12th – an event that organizers hope will attract a lot of attention due to its unusual nature.
Just the other day I was checking out a similar event that is hosted in Niagara Falls, and I was thinking how cool it would be to have a chalk event in Buffalo… and voilà, here it is! I’ve never actually been to a chalk festival before, but I can imagine that they can be a lot of fun. There are some real professional out there like Michael Macaulay, whose 3D chalk drawings are enough to make you want to dive into a sidewalk. In a twist of fate, Michael (work shown here) will be one of the artists chalking up the sidewalks in Buffalo that weekend!
I’m hoping that the event can capture the interest of some of our most talented artists who would gain from the exposure and help the city’s public art scene (albeit temporarily). I would think that some of Buffalo’s finer tattoo artists would be up for this challenge too. For more information regarding entering the event, click here).
A series of storybook images will be chalked that weekend, with storytellers providing readings – perfect for the kids. LOcal artists will also be showing that weekend, and a HopScotch tournament will be held. Personally, I can’t wait to see all of this come to fruition. I love the creativity and the potential buzz that this will help to create for the 500-block, downtown Buffalo, NY.