Downtown Hendersonville's annual art event "Chalk it Up!" is celebrating 28 years this year and is set to host 150 artists to showcase their works of chalk art on the sidewalk along Main Street.
The main spot for Chalk it Up! will be in front of Narnia Studios, 408 N. Main Street, and is set for 9 a.m. July 13, with two possible rain dates: July 20 and July 27.
That is where the event began in 1996 with three children doing chalk drawings on the sidewalk in front of their mother's store. That store was Narnia Studios, owned by Barbara Hughes, who said the annual event is one of the oldest chalk-drawing competitions in the country.
Through the years, there have been over 3,900 drawings with artists using over 100,000 pieces of chalk, according to a news release. Categories are 5 and under, 6-8 years old, 9-12 years old, 13-20 years, 21 and over and also professional. Registration runs through July 12, Hughes said.
Chalk is provided with each artist receiving 20 different colors. No outside medium is allowed. There will be five winners in each age category, and local merchants donate prizes for the winners. The "Best of Show" winner will be in the professional category.
Hughes said this year's event will feature judges who are two city leaders: Mayor Barbara Volk and Hendersonville Police Chief Blair Myhand. As is the case every year, Hughes said all the works of art will be on display downtown until it rains.
For more information and to register, call 828-697-6393.
STORY & PHOTO COURTESY OF ABC 13 WLOSHendersonville's Chalk it Up!, celebrating 28 years, set for mid-July (wlos.com)
