Chalk It Up For Spring
Queensland’s iconic event , The Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers, boasts 170 000 beautiful blooms across parks and public spaces and this festival of flowers is about to become even more colourful.This year sees the introduction of an Artists – In – Residence Program with four locally based chalk artists who will bring colour to the paths of Queens Park Botanic Gardens every Saturday. The four female chalk artists will be focusing on all things floral and their work will bring more brilliant colour to the already pretty displays.
Artists – In – Residence
First up is Kristy Richardson who will be at Queens Park on September 5. Toowoomba local Kristy believes everyone can be creative and artistic. Kristy is known for her bold use of colour and her trademark style is bright and fun. Her business Kreate It offers painting workshops as well as custom artwork, art supplies and more. You can find Kristy @www.kreatit.com.au
On the 12th September, Mary Kate Thompson , a local artist and designer, who is passionate about art for children, will share her colourful work. Mary Kate has been involved with the Carnival for many years. She has created two pieces of ephemeral art for the Avante Garde Initiative in previous years, including The Bed of Roses in 2007 and Umbrelliads in 2008. She is also very active in Council float design and construction. Her business is ARTiculate Art and Drama Studio.
Alex Stalling has over a decade of experience in creative industries as a practicing artist, founding and managing artist run spaces,event and festival programming and community engagement.Working primarily in acrylic, watercolour and line work, Alex creates works that invoke happy ; referencing objects, organic representations, animals, nature and emotive motivations to create bold designs. Founder of creative studio Tinker, she enjoys sharing her love of arts through creative workshops. Alex will be sharing her work on September 19.
Stacey Blinco believes that art has held her attention as long as she can remember and she became serious about her painting 12 years ago. Her subjects, style and mediums vary; she has a great love of drawing and painting in acrylic, oil, watercolour, or ink. If a composition catches her eye, she cannot help but capture it. Stacey is a member of Artists of Crows Nest Inc. and regularly exhibits her work locally.
You can view these talented artists working from 10am to 2pm every Saturday during the Carnival. The Artists – In – Residence Chalk Art program joins more than 30 other events and activations that will feature at this year’s Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers. This includes the new region -wide food trail #EATS, as well as the popular Talking Pub and Foodie Dinner Tours, Rowes light shows at night , guided and non guided walking tours, plus the activations at Cobb + Co Museum and the much loved floral group displays. The Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers runs from the 18 -27 September 2020. Head up the range for a day or a stay. It will be blooming beautiful!
Michelle Beesley is a Brisbane born and bred former primary school teacher. A wife, proud grandma and mother of three grown sons, Michelle is thrilled to have recently published her debut contemporary romance novel, It Happened in Paris, with Serenade Publishing. Her novella – Escape to D’ Amour was published in 2019. Michelle’s work can be found in the anthologies – Destination Romance and Short & Sweet. When not reading or writing Michelle can be found at a coffee shop chatting with friends, front row at a fashion show, or beside a rugby union field cheering on her favourite teams.
Michelle is a reluctant traveller, Francophile, keen walker and avid yoga enthusiast plus a book, film and theatre lover who loves everything pink and sparkly (including champagne). You can find Michelle on instagram @michellebeesley_writer and her website: michellebeesley.com.
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