Sidewalk Chalk

Every year before Spring Break, the junior and senior classes of the Advanced Art Major at AAST bring their learning outdoors by creating works of art using sidewalk chalk. Students work in groups of two to three and collaborate to create unique, detailed artwork that remain on view for several days after the event. This tradition dates back almost to the Academy's beginnings in the 1990s and is beloved by our students and the community.

The Advanced Art Major seniors work to merge their individual Senior Mastery topics together in their sidewalk chalk drawings - for example, students might merge the study of color theory with the topic of southern culture to create a joint sidewalk chalk work that is rich with color symbolism and images that tie into the lived experiences of southern Americans. These sidewalk chalk drawings will form part of their overall portfolio, which will be displayed and critiqued during their capstone Senior Mastery presentation and entered into competitions and scholarships as they complete their time at AAST.  Juniors in the Advanced Art Major work together in groups of 2-3 to determine a specific theme they would like to explore, and then create their collaborative artwork based on that theme. Themes can tie into their future Senior Mastery topics.

Each pair or trio of students is responsible for writing a comprehensive artist’s statement for their idea, which is displayed alongside their sidewalk square as they work. At the conclusion of the day, judges from the school and the community are invited to view the completed work and determine which square shows the most technical skill, craftsmanship, attention to detail, and originality. The top three students win prizes selected by their instructors. There is also be a people’s choice award in which the entire student body of AAST can vote on their favorite sidewalk art.

Check out the galleries below for images from past years of Sidewalk Chalk!

2019 Sidewalk Chalk

Rain or Shine, the Art Majors always see it through!

First Place Winners - James Poston, Bella Boos, and Guillermo Lopez,

"The Three Stooges"

2018 Sidewalk Chalk

First Place Winners - Sawyer McDuffie and Kathryn Hollingsworth,

"The Beautiful Swans"