Click here to view visual examples of projects!
No. Our street murals are explicitly not traffic calming devices. Having said that, we have witnessed innumerable examples of how they serve as a very powerful community building strategy offering so many emergent benefits. Often, people initiate a project to slow down traffic but stay committed to the project because of all the wonderful things we see happening as a result of intersection paintings.
By the communities themselves. We do not initiate any of the projects but rather facilitate the successful collaborative visioning, planning and implementation of projects brought forth by community members. Paintings are semi-permanent and need to be repainted every 1-3 years.
Informally, we encourage you to start talking/potlucking with your neighbors as soon as possible. Tell them you are thinking of initiating a project and invite their ideas and feedback. In general, we have seen that the more participation you are able to elicit, the greater the success and longevity of the project.
More formally, after your design has been approved by Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT), they issue a petition that lists all the folks that you need to get signatures from. Usually you need 100% consent from residents in the properties adjacent to the painting and 80% consent from a two-block radius.
We have consistently heard that it does and many of our core staff have personal experiences with this being the case. Please take a look at some of our research projects.
Sometimes fundraising and volunteer recruitment can be challenging for some sites. Sometimes neighbors are not supportive and may even complain. And sometimes people leave skid marks on the paintings soon after they are painted. Out of 56 paintings, we've had a handful die out as the community is unable to sustain enthusiasm and capacity to repaint regularly. These are a few examples of the challenges in planning, implementing and sustaining a project. But by far, the majority (approximately 50) get re-painted.
Typically, projects range between $500-$1200 in hard costs for paint, painting supplies and food IF all of the organizing including program coordination, community engagement and artwork is volunteer labor. However, if you are working with historically marginalized people we highly recommend that you budget for stipends because community engagement is invaluable and people need financial compensation if they are to be able to participate.
Typically, an hour to clean/pressure wash the streets. Another hour or so to dry. An hour or two to chalk out the design and then 2-5 hours to paint depending on the complexity and size of the painting.
Typically, an artist from the community volunteers to elicit and then interpret community feedback into a coherent design that successfully depicts the community’s shared sense of place. If no such artist comes forward voluntarily, a stipend/honorarium will surely encourage one to step forward. The most important quality of the artist, however, is that they are collaborative and are able to facilitate the community’s vision, rather than propose their own vision/ design.
Yes, City Repair provides technical support for conceptualizing the intersection design. Please refer to our technical assistance section at the bottom of this page.
Yes! Please take a look here.
1-3 years.
Cabot Solid Color Acrylic Deck Stain
Water-reducible acrylic Traffic Paint (Zone Marking Paint)
Duckback Walnut-based friction additive. 1 packet per gallon of paint.
2024 updates coming soon.
In Italy, they’re called madonnari, in Germany they go by strassenmaler, and in the United Kingdom they’re screevers. At the Festival, we call them street painters. Watch them reveal their artistry as they transform a non-descript State College street into an art exhibition in four days.
The Festival’s Street Painting exhibition will once again feature street painters of national and regional significance. In addition, local artists, Penn State, and local secondary school students will showcase their work. To apply to be one of our street painters please contact us.
Finally, our Little Art Alley provides artists of any age and ability with the opportunity to add to the festival! No pre-registration needed. Step right up. For a $5 fee, you get a beautiful box of pastels, a 14″x 14″ square to draw on and the opportunity to create a masterpiece!
Street painters will be on-site at Foster Avenue on either side of South Allen Street from Thursday, July 13 to Saturday, July 15 between the hours of 10:00 am and 7:00 pm, and Sunday, July 16, from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm, weather permitting.
We’ve been fortunate to have Holly Foy as the intrepid coordinator of our Street Painting exhibition since 2001. Creative, resourceful, and good-humored, she brings together an immensely talented group of street painters. Their work brings an extra element of joy to the festival.
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