By Shonna Howenstine
Paso Robles, CA - The Paso Robles Festival of the Arts will celebrate all things artistic on Saturday, May 23 in the downtown City Park. Sixty-three acclaimed artists from far and wide will be in Paso Robles to share their love of fine art with the community in this brand new, free event.
A rare treat and one of the artistic highlights of the event is the Quick-Draw painting “competition”. Twenty-eight professional artists will be stationed throughout the City Park on Saturday morning. At approximately 9:00 AM a whistle will blow and the artists have 2 hours to complete a painting of something they see from where they are sitting or standing.
“For most artists an original painting can take anywhere from 2 hours to 4 weeks, so this Quick-Draw is a real test of these artists’ talents,” said Anne Laddon, organizer of the Fine Art Show and the Quick-Draw. “It should be very interesting to see what these great artists choose to paint and it will be a unique opportunity for people to watch many wonderful artists work in one place. Simply stroll through the park from 9 to Noon and you will be able to see some of the best Plein Air (outdoor) artists at work.”
Once the whistle blows at 11:00, the artists must put down their paintbrushes immediately and “art angels” will help the artists place them into frames while still wet, and take them to the steps of the Carnegie Library for an auction. Art aficionados have a chance to purchase the art they have witnessed these artists create in the Paso Robles City Park.
Said Laddon, “This is so much fun, with high energy as the artists work to both stay focused and beat the clock! We hope everyone who is interested will come out to the Quick-Draw.”
Other event highlights include a fine art show, art demonstrations, a public mural project, live entertainment, hands-on outdoor art classrooms for kids and more.
For more information and to see samples of participating artists’ work, go to www.prcity.com/fota
In addition to the Festival of the Arts, other events in Paso Robles on Memorial Day Weekend include the Paso Robles Classic Collector Car Auction at River Oaks Hot Springs and the Great Western Bicycle Rally at the Paso Robles Event Center. For more information, go to www.travelpaso.com
