
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – For years, thousands of visitors have traveled to Waterfront Park to see what happens when artists hit the pavement. The Via Colori Street Painting Festival returned this weekend, bringing artists and visitors together to chalk the pavement and support the Girl Scouts of Kentuckiana.
One artist flew from Florida to participate in this year’s event.
“It’s a way to bring the art form into the public eye, and then they can watch us create it as we are working with the elements and everything,” Lisa Sandrowicz said. “It’s kind of interactive.”
Sandrowicz’s chalk masterpiece is a brightly colored racing horse inspired by a trip to the Kentucky Derby.
Via Colori has been hosted in Kentucky since 2007. Through the years, more than 50 Via Colori festivals have been held in 14 cities.
“I love being around other artists, and we bounce ideas off each other,” Sandrowicz said. “I know some that are from Florida as well. It’s awesome just meeting new people and making new friends. We see each other at other chalking events too.”
Art is a gateway into a bigger cause. Proceeds from the event will go toward Girl Scouts of Kentuckiana, to benefit girls’ leadership programs.
“It’s a way for the community to come together,” Girl Scouts of Kentuckiana Chief Development Officer Tonya Schweitzer said. “We have 225 artists doing 130 paintings. The artists range from age five to like 85.”
Since the festival’s creation decades ago, organizers say the Via Colori Street Painting Festival has raised more than $8 million for anything from sheltering victims of abuse to preserving historic architecture and other community-building causes.
To learn more, visit www.viacolorikentucky.com.
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