Ventura street painters will create works of art just steps from the waves

OUR CREATIVITY... is always on the flow, no matter what the season, and tapping into it? We can, whenever we wish to do so. But there is something about September that swirls a bright and hope-filled line through our personal paintbox, for the start of the school year and the noticeable change in the sunlight has a way of upping our artistic game. Finding inspiration isn't too tricky; just swing by a local gallery in your neighborhood or find a self-guided mural tour. But if you want to add a few delicious ocean-y aromas to the mix, and the opportunity to stroll an area full of shops and eateries, then you'll want to make for Ventura Harbor Village, where the Ventura Art & Street Painting Festival is celebrating 15 festive years. The "street painting" part of the equation? It's absolutely what you're thinking and hoping: Madonnari will create ephemeral chalk paintings with the picturesque harbor as the background.

SEPT. 9 AND 10... are the 2023 dates, which is perfectly timed, for it is right around the second weekend of September when all of that golden light seems to really sparkle. Some 20 artists will be fashioning fantastical images on the ground, stroke by deftly placed stroke, over the course of the weekend, while around 30 art vendors will be selling their works nearby. Also close? Places to do lunch, pick up a few postcards or a hat, and soak in that Ventura vibe. This is all free to see, by the by. And if you're a pottery person? Be sure to pay a visit to the 4th Annual Marvelous Mug Market, happening on Sept. 9 and 10 at the Ventura Pottery Gallery.