Life

"Chalk It Up!" registration opens Wednesday

By Barbara Hughes, Published: May 30, 2014

Registraton is now open for the 18th annual Chalk It Up! in downtown Hendersonville, in which kids — and some artistic adults — make Main Street sidewalks their canvas.

Said to be one of the largest one of the oldest and largest chalk art contests in the nation, Chalk It Up! is scheduled for July 12. The artists start at 9 a.m. while viewing lasts until the next rain.

“Hopefully the weather will be great," said Barbara Hughes, owner of Narnia Studios and the founder of the event. "We do have two rain dates (7/19 and 7/26) but we sure don’t want to have to use them."
Participation has grown over the years.

"Chalk It Up!" has been in Southern Living. http://www.narniastudios.com/Narnia.pdf

“One hundred fifty artists from under 5 years old to 75 years old plus come together to create an al fresco art experience,” Hughes said. “It gives everyone who is lucky enough to reserve a space a chance to feel ownership of that square of Main Street for whatever length of time their artwork lasts, weather-wise!”
“Chalk It Up!” draws thousands of visitors to downtown Hendersonville to witness the makeover of the city sidewalks from blank canvas to a panoramic artistic expression.
Categories for the contest are 5 & under, 6-8 years old, 9-12 years old, 13-20 years, 21 and over and professional. The event is free but artists must register in order to get a space on the sidewalk. Registration begins June 4 and lasts until the spaces are filled. The chalk is provided with each artist receiving 20 different colors. No outside medium is allowed. There are 5 winners in each age category and the local merchants donate the prizes for those winners. The professional category has one ‘best of show’ winner.
A limited number of commemorative T-shirts will be available for sale for $12 starting at the opening of registration. Individuals and corporate sponsors are welcome to contribute by going to: www.narniastudios.com/chalk_it_up_contribute.html .

For more information, call Hughes at 697-6393. To register for “Chalk It Up!” go to Narnia Studios at 315 N. Main Street . To view images of last year’s contest, go to www.narniastudios.com.