The 3D craze that has made a resurgence in film this year is coming to a community art festival near you this spring.
The third annual Chalk Walk Festival in the Historic Northeast is returning to Concourse Park at Benton and Gladstone boulevards Saturday and Sunday, April 24-25. The theme of the event this year will be 3D, which will be expressed in three different ways.
First, organizers plan to have two artists render anamorphic art pieces on the Concourse. Anamorphic art involves creating elongated, distorted pieces of art that, when viewed from a precise angle, appear as 3D images. (If this description has you scratching your head, Google “anamorphic art” and prepare to have your mind blown.)
Second, artists will be encouraged to use stark, vibrant colors with contrasting warm and cool colors. When viewed with Chromadepth glasses, which will be available for people to use during the festival for a donation, the image pops off the ground.
Finally, as usual, there will be three-dimensional raised surfaces for people to draw on with chalk again this year. The cow and the bus will be back, along with sculptures from Kansas City Art Institute students.
Wolfgang Bucher, director of Mosaic Brain — the program of Northeast Arts KC that puts on Chalk Walk, said the idea for a 3D Chalk Walk came to him from a young girl during the first Chalk Walk two years ago. The girl, Ellie Beck, drew a flower and then pulled out her Crayola 3D glasses to view the image. Everyone wanted a turn with the child’s glasses.
“I thought, OK, we definitely have to do this,” Bucher said. “Thanks to one of the kids who came out, we got our idea.”
There will be lots of entertainment and activities again this year, including KC Kite Club, StoneLion Puppet Theatre, and Accessible Arts, which will demonstrate tools for people with disabilities to make outdoor art.
“It is truly a grassroots community event,” Bucher said. “What I like is the event is so easy to be at — and all local.”
Organizers are still seeking a major cash sponsor for the event, along with chalk artists (apply to participate for free on the Chalk Walk Web site), and non-artists can volunteer to help run the festival, as well.
“We’ve been complimented as one of the most relaxed, stress-free festivals to volunteer at,” Bucher said.
The deadline for artists to apply is Thursday, April 15. Artists need not be professional to participate.
“You get chalk, and you get fed,” Bucher said. “And you get adoration for free.”
To learn more, apply as an artist or volunteer to help out with the third annual Chalk Walk in Historic Northeast, see www.chalkwalk.org. |
Chalk Walk goes 3D in year three