The Bakersfield Museum of Art held its 23rd “Via Arte” Street Painting festival on Oct. 16 & 17 from 9:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. at the Marketplace. 

“Via Arte” is an Italian Street Painting Festival hosted by the Bakersfield Museum of Art. It is where professionals, students, and children artists come together to display their skills with the use of chalk. 

The Street Painting Festival had its first installment in 1998, with the theme of having more community involvement. The theme for this year was for artists to use the Marketplace parking lot as their canvas. 

Every single artistic piece was made entirely from chalk and although the event was free of charge The Bakersfield Museum of Art had an information by the entrance where people could purchase t-shirts, face masks and chalk to help contribute to the “Via Arte” Festival. 

“Via Arte” encourages schools, clubs, and organizations to volunteer and temporarily purchase a square space of the parking lot to let their creativity roam free. 

Upon entering the Festival there were two sections closed off for the artists, one side is for the children and students and the other side is for the professional artists. The price for a “Via Bambino” children’s area is $20, which consists of a 2 by 2 square and a 12 piece chalk set of colors. 

The Kern High School District definitely made an appearance at “Via Arte” this year with some pieces on display by West High School, East High, Wasco Independence, Highland, and Frontier were just some of the high schools present at the Italian Street Painting Festival this year. 

“Via Arte” gives out some Festival Awards to the best school or professional featured artists, QR codes were placed next to the square paintings that were eligible for the contest. The community decides which artistic piece wins the Street Painting Contest. 

Festival Award prizes range from $700 to $350 and categories include “Best in Festival,” “Best Technique,” and the “People’s Choice Award.” 

If interested, the full list of winners was set to be announced on Oct. 18 via the official Bakersfield Museum of Art social media and website platforms.