WILLIAMSBURG — Local art lovers now have through Labor Day weekend to enter the Muscarelle Museum of Art’s Driveway Chalk Art Competition.
The museum has extended the deadline for the chalk art competition to Monday, Sept. 6.
The unique project allows community members to select one of the 50 images from the museum’s permanent collection and recreate that piece using chalk in their own driveways or another outdoor space.
Participants must take a photo of their finished artwork and upload it with their registration forms to be eligible for $5,900 in cash prizes.
The project was started by Steve Prince, the Muscarelle Museum’s director of engagement and distinguished artist in residence, to give people a creative outlet amid the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We want people to be safe, but we also want people to do something that is family-friendly, to go out into their yards or the park and create a thing of beauty,” he said. “That has always been the thrust of this project — utilizing art as a tool or a balm for healing. It’s a great opportunity for people to use the metaphorical nature of this project, that you’re making something that is temporal. Hopefully, this moment is temporal in our lives, and we will move back to some sense of normalcy.”
The museum extended the competition as a way to encourage more community members to participate.
“As people are gathering and having picnics, with schools about to start up, it’s another wonderful opportunity for people to use their creativity in the context of community,” Prince said. “You also have a chance to win some nice prizes that would be right in time for Christmas.”
The competition is open to the public and will become an annual event. Prince plans to add age brackets, levels and other “twists and turns” to next year’s competition.
The winners will be selected by celebrity juror CCH Pounder, a veteran film and television actress and longtime art curator.
All entries must be submitted by midnight on Sept. 6 and require a $20 entry fee that will go toward supporting future art projects in the Williamsburg community.
More information about the competition can be found online.
