Help the Historic Fourth Avenue Coalition paint the town this weekend at Paintstock.
Around 20 artists will paint murals to hang on the chain link fence surrounding a construction site at Fourth Avenue and Sixth Street — the former location of the bar The Flycatcher. A multistory apartment complex is currently intended for the spot.
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Woodstock, artists will be painting the murals on cloth canvases that will hang from the fences (like what you see currently). Three canvases will be reserved for community participation.
Kids will be able to paint and color on two of the canvases, and the third — dubbed "Thumbs Up Tucson" — will be a pointillism mural of Tucson's sunset made from anybody who wants to lend a thumb.
John Carrillo, who is painting a mural with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Tucson and is the art chair for the coalition, says the artists will be painting a variety of subjects that naturally include desert scenes and cacti.
The plan is for the murals to stay up as long as possible.
"They might rotate out, depending on the weather and the elements ... or evolve as the construction site evolves," he says, adding that the builder, Chasse Building Team, has also been involved in developing the idea.
"Our focus in philanthropy is always kid-focused, so we wanted to make sure we were including local kids in the paintings..." says Leigh-Anne Harrison, the director of client services for Chasse Building Team. "We opened it up to the community and it kind of just evolved. It wasn't originally going to be this cool."
Carrillo and his wife Nicole Carrillo own Rosie's Barkét on Seventh Street, just off Fourth Avenue. They previously owned the now-closed kitchen boutique Mabel's on Fourth.
"With The Flycatcher gone and this chain link fence, there's this big void," Carrillo says. "How can you take that dead space and activate it and energize it? We came up with this idea that would make an impact and bring the community together to brighten up the avenue."
If you go
What: Paintstock
When: Sunday, Aug. 18. The artists will be painting from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and you can add your thumbprint to the "Thumbs Up Tucson" mural any time during the day, but painting on the kids' murals is 4-7 p.m.
Where: Fourth Avenue and Sixth Street and 311 E. Seventh St.
Cost: Free
More info: Check out the Facebook event
