STREET PAINTING FESTIVAL COMING THIS WEEKEND.

Byline: Naush Boghossian Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA- Town Center Drive this weekend will once again become an expansive canvas for artists at the third annual Bella Via Italian Street Painting Festival.

About 300 professional and amateur street artists will transform the pavement into a work of art with a colorful array of chalk designs that are original pieces or copies of artistic masterpieces.

Carol Maglione, programs manager for Newhall Land and Farming - the event's sponsor along with the Valencia Town Center - said that last year's event attracted more than 80,000 people. This year, they are expecting 100,000 people.

``What is really wonderful about this event is that the quality of artwork that people will have an opportunity to see is absolutely phenomenal,'' Maglione said. ``This is an opportunity for people in the Santa Clarita Valley and the North Los Angeles region and beyond to come and witness this 400-year-old tradition of public art.''

Event organizers began the week by applying a fresh coat of asphalt on the street and outlining the 146 squares, each with its own sponsor.

The featured artists, who have already begun working on their drawings, have chosen classical pieces for this year's event.

Melanie Stimmell, a technical director for Comedy Central's animated series South Park, and Tomoteru Saito, a featured artist from Italy, will each recreate pieces by 18th-century artist Adolphe-William Bouguereau.

Leesa Whitten and Zofia Kostyrko Edwards will recreate a work by pre-Raphaelite artist John William Waterhouse, and Joseph Gerges and Juan Tejada will do a painting by 16th-century Italian painter Caravaggio.

``It's just a wide range of different artists and styles that are presented,'' Maglione said.

The event also features Michelangelo's Gallery, which offers children and other budding artists the opportunity to create miniature pieces.

There will also be plenty of music, food, entertainment, children's activities, along with an art show, a 5K race and Italian stone sculptors.

On Saturday evening, A Slice of Valencia gourmet food and wine tasting will offer delicacies from Santa Clarita Valley's finest restaurants and caterers.

Street painting is an Italian tradition dating back to the 16th century when street painters, or Madoonari, would transform sidewalks and village squares into colorful, temporary galleries.

Bella Via, Italian for ``beautiful street,'' takes after festivals in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and San Rafael, and is the only festival in the North Los Angeles county.

Bella Via raises money for fine arts programs in area schools. All proceeds from the sale of squares in Michelangelo's Gallery and a portion of festival and square sponsorships go to The Bella Via Fund, part of the SCV Chamber Education Foundation.