I Madonnari chalk art debuts on KEYT patio

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The I Madonnari Italian Street Painting Festival comes to Santa Barbara virtually this Memorial Day Weekend for its 35th year.

The online festival ran from May 29 to 31.

During the festival, artists use chalk pastels to transform pavement canvases into elaborate and vibrant masterpieces. These "canvases" range from driveways to sidewalks to even the patio outside KEYT's news station.

Those interested could watch the street painting come to life live 24/7 online.

Artists arrived at 10 a.m. on Wednesday and returned to work on the 40-by-20 foot mural several times through Monday, May 31.

To start, the artists laid down a paper “cartoon” template they used to outline the street painting image.

They returned throughout the week to fill in and finish the piece.

To donate and learn more about the festival’s history, go to iMadonnariFestival.com. Online festival visitors can also view the daily evolution of other street paintings on the festival's website and social media pages.