Blizzard vs Street Painting

If I was at 47 Pianos, I would have awakened to a blizzard forecast.  Instead, I got to the Lake Worth Beach Street Painting Festival before the crowds arrived on a hot sunny day, before the mercury plunges 40 degrees tomorrow!

Check out the tatted artist's socks.

I probably should support the Lake Worth Playhouse more.  It opened in the silent movie era and was nearly demolished during the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane--the fourth worst in the United States--when the Wurlitzer organ went bye-bye.

Several artists prioritized avoiding Forida's bright February sun.

Others coordinated their outfits to create a Sixties vehicle even more iconic than my very own Herr Cucaracha.

The heat didn't seem to bother Marimba Anhelos Del Copal.

Animals are always popular subjects

. . . and beautiful women, too.

Ya gotta love a good pun!

I couldn't tell if this work was political or not.

If so, it and this portrait of Angela Davis were the only ones that sought to enlighten rather than soothe. When I complimented the artist, he exulted "She's still alive!" Unlike so many of the other Black Panthers.

Many of the artists were POC

. . . including green.

Compass, a community center for LGBTQI+ folk needs to up its game, both in terms of deadlines and content.  The festival began yesterday.

I read in the Times this morning that Luke Evans is going to star in Broadway's revival of The Rocky Horror Show.  Hubba, hubba. I caught the original production with the incomparable Tim Curry as Dr. Frank 'n Furter at the Belasco Theater in 1975.

Labyrinth, which I've never seen, is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.  Bowie's already been dead a decade.

You just know "Golden" is gonna the win Oscar for Best Song this year!

Other pop culture nods included Dawson's Creek and Pluribus.  I like the latter mural a lot more than the angry show itself.

Did you know bikes could be "lowriders" too?  Hot dawg!

I never noticed this mural of the Lake Worth Beach Pier before.  I haven't walked on it since Christine first invited me to visit in 2010. 

Update:

The NYC forecast proved accurate.  Alex, the neighbor who waters my plants, sent me this photo of the view from 47 Pianos Monday morning:

Photo by Alex Ruter

More Street Painting:

Duck Lip Grannies (2025)

Lake Worth's Big Weekend (2024)

Artists @ Work (2023)

Artistic Tanning (2022)

Sweet Invasion (2020)

Tweed, Not Tweet (2019)

Homesteading (2018)

Artistic Tanning

Street painters returned to Lake Worth for the first time since the 2020's sweet invasion.  I gave top prize to this rooster.  Ignore the blue straw and look at the incredible detail and patterned background.

The weekend festival swells the city's population by 100,000 gawkers, including as many as 600 artists from all over the country.

The festival's covid guidance (with apologies to Leonardo) was so last week but it reminded me of a fit woman I'd seen the afternoon before.  She wore a fuchsia baseball cap and a matching t-shirt that proclaimed "Socialism Distance"  which, unlike the "Let's Go Brandon" sweatshirts I saw in Sunday's crowd, at least made me laugh.

In 2020, Saturday night rain washed away a lot of painstaking effort but this year the weather fully cooperated.

Thom accused this non-binary artist of getting behind on his work because he took too long choosing an outfit, the top half of an itty bitsy teeny weenie yellow polka dot bikini.

Several works paid tribute to more famous artists.  Chris would have appreciated seeing Mucha in his Florida 'hood.

Frida Kahlo put in an appearance, too.

Vermeer was having a moment.

Not that anyone was heeding his advice!

Young street painters dominated. They generally didn't protect themselves from the sun as much as the old timers.

I didn't have the heart to tell this kid that most people referred to the singer he depicted as Johnny Cash, not John.

Local merchants sponsor many of the painters.  Can you tell what this restaurant serves?

Although it looked as if fewer artists participated this year, the quality of their work speaks for itself.

More Street Painting:

Blizzard vs. Street Painting (2026)

Duck Lip Grannies (2025)

Lake Worth's Big Weekend (2024)

Artists @ Work (2023)

Sweet Invasion (2020)

Tweed, Not Tweet (2019)

Homesteading (2018)