A local resident is using his talent as an artist to bring cheer to the community this summer.
Sydney Dunn has been out creating chalk drawings along 50th Ave between 43 St and Beckett Road. He says the images he chooses depend on what he’s feeling.
There have been Harry Potter drawings; most recently, there are SpongeBob drawings.
Dunn says he got the idea at the Summer Kickoff Party that was held on Mainstreet on June 24. He was at the event, and while he was waiting for his parents, he decided to use the chalk left out for activities to draw.
“I wanted to continue drawing. So, I went out and bought some for myself and started doing it on the sidewalk,” he says.
Dunn has been out drawing on the sidewalks whenever the weather is nice. He says he doesn’t mind if it rains because he has more space to draw again. “I’m out almost every day if it’s nice enough,” he says.
Dunn’s typical day with his artwork starts in the late afternoon or evenings, and then he draws until it’s dark out. He says he will sometimes use a flashlight and stay out late into the night to complete a piece he’s been working on.
Artwork is something Dunn says he’s passionate about. While in school, he always enjoyed art classes. Now that he’s done school, he hopes to pursue art and see where he can go with it.
Since he’s started drawing, Dunn has gone through 24 packs of chalk, each containing 40 chalk pieces. There has also been tons of positive feedback for him.
“Some of the people who walk at 6 a.m. in the mornings have stopped by to tell me how much they liked it.”
“There’s a lot of people who wave and honk,” he says, and many kids stop to tell him how much they love the drawings.
Dunn says he enjoys how it seems to brighten up the community. “It’s one of the things that parents and kids can both enjoy.”
He also says he’s up to taking requests if anyone has something, in particular, they would like to see. The best place to catch him, he says, is while he’s out drawing on the sidewalks in the evenings.
