Chalking for Charity
Today, charity chalk pavement art events are very popular, especially in the United States; chalk sidewalk festivals are raising money for a myriad of good causes, from providing aid to Vietnam veterans to supporting religious institutions. But as the old saying goes “there is nothing new under the sun” as this feature from the Daily Express, 1922, perfectly illustrates.
Girl pavement artists: Hyde Park Corner, London 1922
“Sketching on paving stones is much more difficult than working on canvas.”
That was the verdict of two pretty girl art students, who staked a “claim” at Hyde Park Corner early yesterday morning, and became pavement artists for the day, for the benefit of St. George’s Dispensary (children’s hospital), Pocock Street, Blackfriars
Girl pavement artists: Hyde Park Corner, London 1922
“We find this work extremely difficult and tiring,” said one of them. “We practised for a while in the backyard before taking up our pitch here.”
Their gallery lacked nothing in the way of colour. The “exhibits” included a boat with yellow sails; two children, in gay-coloured pinafores, playing with a ball of even brighter hues, and a mystery picture. This showed an elderly and somewhat plain woman, in a long robe, and a large black sombrero, gazing from a basement window. Was she looking for her Romeo?
Girl pavement artists: Hyde Park Corner, London 1922
Considerably more than £1 (£50 in today’s value) had by the afternoon, found its way into the young artists “hat.”
Published in the Daily Express newspaper, England (Thursday 1st June 1922)
Researched by Philip Battle
Visit my Artists of The Paving Stone page on Facebook!
