History   

Street painting has been recorded throughout Europe since the 16th century and is considered an important expression of popular art.  In Italy, street painters are called “ Madonnari” after their Historical practice of creating chalk paintings of the Madonna.  Typically the Madonnari traveled from city to city creating prolific works of art publicly in community courtyards and squares.  The past twenty years has brought not only a revival, but a virtual explosion of this art form.  Professional artists and students worldwide have begun to appear on the streets in celebration of the tradition of  innovative content and design while producing a necessary vehicle for traditional community based public art.

Mission

Our mission is to utilize public spaces for the purpose of strengthening our communities through the visual arts. We are, a collective of artists who are committed to creating empowering multi-cultural and inter-generational environments through traditional art forms that are produced publicly.  By introducing the Italian inspired I Madonnari sidewalk chalk painting festival to Tucson we are creating a progressive arts mentorship program with youth and artists directly and providing a forum for communities to further develop relationships with one another in a festival environment dedicated to art appreciation.  We feel that through the model of the Madonnari artists who founded their art form on principles of community building and neighborhood beautification, we can create a vehicle for our expression to illustrate the streets and sidewalks of Tucson, a city rich in culture and art.

For more information contact:
Tucson Madonnari
Artistic Director Leia Maahs
520-903-4175
e-mail: tucsonimadonnari@yahoo.com
Production Director Barbara Zelano
520-548-0471