BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — The annual Via Arté Italian Street Painting Festival returned to the Marketplace on Saturday, October 22nd and Sunday, October 23rd. The event serves as an opportunity for the community to come together and experience a variety of art styles, all while supporting the Bakersfield Art Foundation.
The Via Arté Italian Street Painting Festival is in its 24th year. The local tradition features professional, high school, and middle school artists creating chalk masterpieces in the tradition of Italian street art.
One of the artists at the event, Abby Kinsey, said that Via Arté can be like a roller coaster, but it still brings out what she loves most about art.
“Even when it gets to those stressful moments, cause sometimes there are, there's still a peacefulness to it," said Kinsey. "So even if I'm getting anxious and I'm a bit of a perfectionist and getting stressed out, I just sort of sit there. And even though there's people everywhere, there’s sort of a calmness to it.”
Thousands of visitors attend the Via Arté Italian Street Painting Festival each year.
