Old Town Temecula Street Painting & Plein Air Art Festival

Fine artists of all ages will be colorizing  Old Town Temecula during the Street Painting and Arts Festival,  June 20-22. Artists will start their works of art on Monday June 16 and continue throughout the week, while street painters and muralists will begin Friday even, June 20th.

Plein air is a French expression, meaning "in the  open air" or painting outdoors.  Plein air artists begin painting Old Town Temecula scenes on canvas and paper,  Monday, June 16,   while string artists  decorate  benches, trees, the gazebo,  and other objects at Sam Hicks Memorial Park.  Titled Yarn Splash,  the string  projects  will be completed Saturday,  June 21. The yarn art remains  in place  through August 24.

Plein air artists paint with oils, water color, pastels and acrylics, through Sunday, June 22. . Temecula's plein air festival is inspired by Ralph Love, a popular California plein air artist who lived and taught in Temecula. His Art Shack was located where Baily's Old Town Dining is now located.

Artwork completed during the Ralph Love Plein Air Festival will  be on display in the Temecula Civic Center, 41000 Main Street,  Saturday and Sunday.  

Muralists, pastel artists, and painters cover the black top of Main and Mercedes Streets at Town Square Park, with vibrant pastel paintings.  With asphalt as their canvas,  street painters have been painting Old Town Temecula's streets for 14 years.  Artists come from as far away as Arizona and Washington to participate in Old Town's Street Painting Festival. Over 140 artists painted 92 murals in 2013.

A unique aspect to Temecula's Street Painting Festival is the family and youth area provided. Here young artists and their parents can paint small two-foot-by-two-foot blocks using the very same pastels that the master painters use for their 10-foot by 12 foot murals. More than  1,800 squares will be made for participants. THIS IS FREE as is admission to all of the art activities.

"It will take most artists 24 hours to finish the largest murals," explained the event coordinator Melody Brunsting. "It's fun to watch their creations develop from a light sketch to a vivid painting. Yet, for the artist, it is a grueling endeavor on hands and knees," she added.

 Street Painting  applications are available at the City of Temecula as well as online at temeculacalifornia.com.  Street Painting begins at 5 p.m. Friday, June 20. Saturday and Sunday hours are 10 a.m.to 5 p.m. Most artists, however,  begin painting at 7 a.m. both days, with some painting into the night Saturday. All murals must be complete by 3 p.m. Sunday for judging.

All three artistic endeavors are part of the Temecula Art Festival. Artists will also display and sell fine art paintings, ceramics and jewelry during the Art Festival June 20-22 at the Temecula Civic Center.

Street Painting, Plein Air, and a Yarn Splash at Sam Hicks Park - Its the 14th Annual Temecula Street Painting Festival

          Painters and muralists will fill the streets during the  14^th Annual Old Town Temecula Street Painting Festival June 20-22, 2014.  Temecula's Street Painting Festival draws thousands of visitors a year and is part of the City of Temecula Arts Festival.   The Ralph Love Plein Air Festival, now in its seventh year, begins  Monday,  June 16  this year with artists painting Old Town Temecula scenes through Sunday,  June 22.  At Sam Hicks Park artists will create yarn art utilizing trees, benches and other components of the park.

         Street painters begin their creations on Friday,  June 20 at 5 p.m.  Over 140 muralists and fine artists create giant pastel murals on Main and Mercedes Streets in Old Town Temecula during the event.  It will take most street painters 18 to 24 hours to complete their murals.  Gayle DuRivage, the 2013 Best of Show winner, will be the featured artist. DuRivage has won the best of show four times in the event's 14-year history. Many of the artists started with the Festival as teenagers and return each year.  Tim Krejci, the 2013 People's Choice winner, began street painting at the 2001 Festival as a middle school student. Now competing as an adult, Krejci, 24, is one of the Festival's top muralists.

         "It's rewarding to see the artists return every year, and watch the youth develop. Many of the artists who started with us 14 years ago, now help teach new artists.  It's like a family reunion when the artists start to arrive.  They enjoy the camaraderie and spirit of the Festival.  Many of them street paint at other festivals throughout the year," stated organizer and founder of the Festival, Melody Brunsting.

           Street painting festivals are held throughout California beginning  each spring and continuing throughout the fall.  Now one of the largest street painting festivals in California, the Temecula event produces over 90 giant murals annually.  A large family area is provided for spectators to  try their artistic hand at using pastels on asphalt.  The 2013 event had 1,620 small squares decorated by spectators.  Artists come from all over California, Washington, Arizona and Colorado to paint.

           Street painting  Best of Show winners receive a $500 cash prize and are honored the following year as the featured artist. Additional prizes are awarded for People's Choice, Best Monochromatic, Best Theme and Best Youth with two age categories.  This year's theme is "Be the Dream."  Blick Art Materials, with several store locations in Southern California, will be providing gift cards to street painting winners.

          The Temecula Street Painting Festival is one of four artistic ventures during the weekend in Old Town Temecula. The Ralph Love Plein Air Festival offers a $500 purchase award from the City of Temecula. First place award is $200;  second place award $100. Plein air artists paint from June 16 to the 22 in Old Town. Look for artists with easels in little nooks of the town.  Finished plein air pieces will be on exhibit and for sale at the Temecula Civic Center Conference room beginning on Saturday at 10 a.m. The exhibit ends on Sunday with the 4:30 p.m. awards ceremony.

          Yarn Splash is a new concept for Temecula's art week.  Artists will decorate trees, the gazebo, light posts, fences, trash cans and benches to create a vibrant and radiant atmosphere from Monday, June 16 through the Saturday, June 21. This is a first-time event within the Temecula Arts Festival and is hosted by the Temecula Valley Museum.  The yarn art creations will remain in place until August 24.

         Fine art exhibits are also on display throughout the weekend at the Temecula Civic Center.   A youth fine art competition will also be on display at the civic center conference room.  The Art Festival booths are available through the City of Temecula, visit www.temeculaevents.org for an application.

        Street Painting and Plein Air Festival ccompetition applications are available online at www.temeculacalifornia.com.  Interested artists may also call Melody at 951-678-1456 to have an application mailed.