Eau Claire artist Fred Sklenar’s self portrait for Chalkfest 2010 marked his second jazz/music-themed creation for the event. He plans to continue the theme in 2011.

Armed with tubs of brightly colored chalk, utensils, and, in some cases, kneepads, dozens of professional and amateur artists will converge on Wilson Park (between Farwell and Barstow streets in downtown Eau Claire) for the fourth time on August 6. Together they will transform yards of tan city sidewalks into extravagant, large-scale chalk creations depicting everything from abstract works and movie scenes to cultural icons.

By day, Sklenar assists in designs of consumer products for companies such as Nintendo, 3M, and Leinenkugels. By night, he creates pastel portraits, some of which reside in area businesses such as Mona Lisa’s, and fuels his musical passions of sax and piano.

One of the event’s most revered artists, Fred Sklenar, will be putting chalk to concrete for the third time. You may recognize Sklenar’s previous Chalkfest entries, as both showcased his incredible attention to detail and passion for the musical arts. Sklenar’s inaugural piece(s) was a series of jazz portraits.

“I have photography from a guy by the name of Herman Leonard, who did a lot of black-and-white photography in the 1950s of jazz musicians, which was my subject matter,” Sklenar explained.   

Over the course of six hours Sklenar brought to life 11 jazz musicians, recreating the likes of Barry Harris, Theloneous Monk, Ella Fitzgerald, and Charley Parker.

His sophomore Chalkfest piece was reminiscent of a Chuck Close portrait – albeit with chalk on concrete, rather then paint on canvas – and depicted a bird’s eye view of himself looking up while playing a piano. 

“I wanted to maintain the music theme, but at the same time wanted to do a self portrait,” Sklenar explained. “I wanted to make it have a dramatic perspective, so I took some photography of myself for the source material, and applied that.”

This year marks Sklenar’s third year participating in Chalkfest, and though he’s keeping the theme of this piece under wraps, one thing is for sure, this time around he’ll be conducting operations differently. 

“I’m going to be working with a designer that works for me,” he explained. “We’re going to do a space right next door – a combined art piece – that’ll be somewhat of a three-dimensional piece.” 

Sklenar’s job and previous art experience lends itself well to the festivities. By day, Sklenar is creative director for Great Northern Corporation, and assists in structural and aesthetic designs of consumer products for companies such as Nintendo, 3M, and Leinenkugels. By night, Sklenar works with pastels to create portraits, some of which reside in area businesses such as Mona Lisa’s, and fuels his musical passions of sax and piano.

In addition to the artwork, the park lends itself to food vendors, music, chalk-related games (including Pictionary and artist duels), and an area for kids to draw. Not to mention all that Summerfest has to offer just a couple blocks down the street. 

The gallery of chalk-work runs from 11am to 7pm, with an awards ceremony at the end where individual and group pieces contend for awards as voted by the audience and a jury. Sunday acts as a gallery day, so you can revisit all the pieces on a relaxed stroll through the park. 

“There are an awful lot of great artists who do Chalkfest, and it just amazes me when I take a break from my piece to walk around and see the other great work,” Sklenar said. “It’s a lot of fun, which is what this event is all about.”