The International Grazie di Curtatone Competition started in 1972 in Mantua, Italy, to preserve the art form of the madonnari (street painters). The international competition is held each August during the public holiday of the Feast of the Assumption. Traditional religious and Renaissance themed street paintings are created in chalk on the piazza in front of the town's church in a 24 hour period under difficult conditions. The contest usually starts in the early evening so participants have to work into or through the night, then battle the blazing heat the following day to finish up their street paintings by the deadline at early evening.
This year, due to rain and more threats of bad thunderstorms on Saturday evening when the competition was supposed to start, the organizers postponed the start until the next morning at 8:00 am. The competition went from 8:00am until 7:00pm that day, which is much more workable hours than the usual overnight timeframe. 176 artists showed up wanting to create their chalk art, but with only 170 spaces available, 6 artists were not able to compete.
Working in very hot and muggy weather, The madonnari who had spaces worked in very hot and muggy weather and managed to make beautiful artwork.
Above: Bruno Fabriani speaks with Monsignor Caporello after the Blessing of the Chalk before the competition starts.
The competition has 3 levels (Semplici, Qualificati, Maestri) and you must win the first level in order to compete in the second level, etc. The top award is winning the 3rd level of competition when you are given the title Maestro or Maestra, meaning you are a master street painter in this particular competition.
Above: American Melanie Stimmell Van Latum was the winner of the 2010 International Madonnari's top prize in the Maestro Category. "A traditional Madonna and Child has earned first place among the masters madonnari" stated in the written jury "particularly valuable expressive faces and intense attention to drapery and fidelity to the original, a painting by Scottish painter of the early twentieth century. Running considered high quality in every respect."
Above: Maestro Category's second place was awarded to Federico Pillan with an intense painting of the crucified Christ from an original Bouguereau painting.
Above: Third place went to Gabriele Ferrari, who drew an original Santa Cecilia with an angel musician.
Above: First in the Qualificati Catogory was American Michael Kirby. His work is the result of an imaginative design: Mary ascends into heaven accompanied by a flight of angels and reaches the Son who still holds the cross of Calvary. "Excellent composition, color and expressive effectively the entire representation." With this success, the artist gains the promotion to Maestro Madonnaro the next time he participates at Grazie.
Above: First place in the Semplici Category was Sandro Vasini. Sandro brought fulfillment to a work inspired by a French painter of the late nineteenth century and showed artistic maturity and color sensibility.
Below: The Creativity Award went to Narcisa Pachera. The pavement, in an intense emotion, presented the image of a child praying and imploring protection for his father leaving for a humanitarian mission.
The Jury Award, re-established this year after a long suspension, was assigned to Sofia Simona Lanfredi of Cocoon, the work "Mater Gracie, Mater Misericordiae'.
The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Grace Award was won by Mexican Adriana Garcia Hernandez and this recognition allows the artist the transition to the Qualificati Category. The artist has combined the figure of Mary with expressions of motherly kindness and their virginal purity of the Madonna delle Grazie.
A final award went to the trio Tomoteru Saito, Mariano Bottoli and Toto De Angelis and was a premium "Friendship" award to highlight the human gesture of cooperation offered by the two master madonnari's friend who is in poor physical condition. The image created by Toto, as usual based on a popular and colorful figurative image, was beautifully framed by the figures of St. George and St. Michael's at war with the devil. A final point concerns the impressive work done by all the organizational system; it is right that their efforts have been successful. The broad consensus of public honors an extraordinary number of people and volunteers who face difficulty and trouble.
Above: Toto de Angelis aka Straccetto
There were lots of beautiful street paintings at Grazie this year, so we are posting a few of them below...
Above: Street painting by Genna Panzarella from California - St. Francisco. Her work brought together two paintings by Correggio.
Above: Street painting by Juandres Vera, Mexican madonnaro qualified.
Above: Street painting by Bruno Fabriani
Above: Street painting by Francesca Garuti
Above: Street painting by Valentina Sforzini
Above: Street painting by Ketty Grossi
Above: Street painting by Luigi Legno
Above: Street painting by Olmo Seresini
Above: Street painting by Vera Bugatti
Above: Bruno Fabriani enjoying himself at Grazie, 2010
Congratulations to all of the winners and participating Madonnari who competed in this year's competition! Mille Grazie to Bruno Fabriani, our Italian Correspondent, for sharing his photos and information with Blog Now on streetpainting.tv!