This Day in History

I Madonnari Italian Street Painting Festival

This festival celebrating the Italian tradition of street painting was brought to Santa Barbara, California, in 1987. Some 200 professional and amateur artists create chalk “paintings”—both reproductions of old masters and original designs—on the Old Mission courtyard. In Italy in the 17th century, vagabond chalk artists often painted the Madonna, and they were known as madonnari. Artists still follow the tradition in the Italian village of Grazie di Curtatone, and Santa Barbara’s “I Madonnari” is considered the village’s sister festival.
More…