Downtown sidewalk becomes chalk artists' canvas

Watch where you step on the sidewalks in downtown Hendersonville, at least until the next rain. You don't want to smudge the brightly colored chalk art.

Every other concrete square in the middle row of the sidewalk is adorned with the creativity of artists of all ages.

"That's a flower with a ladybug," said 14-year-old Emily Trudeau. This is Emily's second year drawing on the sidewalks.

Her 12-year-old sister, Grace, drew a colorful bluejay near a tree.

"It lets me express in art what I think in my mind sometimes," she said.

The artists begin painting the sidewalks at 9 a.m. Saturday for the Chalk It Up event. The chalk was provided by Narnia Studios proprietor Barbara Hughes, who sponsors the event each year. Each artist receives 20 different colors. Inez Wolfe, 62, used the chalk to draw the Biltmore House.

"It needs shadows," she said. "I didn't have any black. I did the best I could with the colors I had."

But it was her 5-year-old granddaughter's art work that was special. Sydney Bryon colored her square with an American flag in honor of her father, Bret Bryon, who serves with the Army National Guard.

Some of the artists were sticklers for detail. Others were not.

"I did have a pond," said Valerie Gessler, 7. "But I was coloring the sky the same color and went over it. Where'd it go?"

Brother Nicholas Gessler's bright orange cat drew attention from the viewing public. It was a fat cat, upside down on a lavendar pillow.

Several viewers stopped to admire the artwork of Lee Edgerton, 43. The drawing was the nail-scarred hand of Jesus nailed to the cross.

"It (art) is a hobby," he said. "The idea came from a sweatshirt."

Edgerton was one of the first people to register for this year's contest, Hughes said. It was his first year drawing in the event.

People circled the art work of 18-year-old Anna-Lace Gardner.

"It's a cancer patient looking at a sunrise," she said.

The Gardner and Gessler families were just two of several families who make Chalk It Up a family event every year.

"This is one of the highlights of the summer for us," Anna-Lace said. "It's a creative outlet. Art is a wonderful way of expressing yourself. It adds beauty to the streets and it can really bring the community together. It's something my family always does together."

There were 150 entries this year, with 43 people on the waiting list, Hughes said.