Old Town Temecula came alive with paints and pastels last weekend as hundreds of young and older artists from as far away as Montebello, San Diego, and Orange County splashed color onto canvas, pavement and paper.

A pair of free art festivals again joined forces to help build upon Temecula’s ongoing SummerFest activities.

The art-strewn roadways and canvases had a mesmerizing effect on many Old Town shoppers and visitors.

"I would come back here every year just for this," said Myra Tromello, a Las Vegas resident who had stopped in with a friend on Sunday, the final day of the three-day festival. "I can’t stop looking at it all."

Her friend, Josephine Robich of Temecula, was equally captivated.

"I’m just an admirer, but these are some creative geniuses out here," she said. "It is so special what they had for the kids, too. The little squares are so nice."

The 10th annual Old Town Temecula Street Painting Festival and third annual Ralph Love Plein Air Festival were sponsored by the city. The events have been held annually on the last Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of June.

The widely-scattered artists created almost 20 plein air paintings – a technique described as "on location" canvas or paper works – as well as 75 adult street art pieces and 850 children’s and youth pieces.

Street painters were provided pastel chalk and a place to draw in the blocked-off streets across from the new civic center project, a $73 million complex that includes a completed parking garage and soon-to-be finished City Hall, outdoor amphitheater, police satellite office and other facilities.

Participants were encouraged to bring their own image for reference, as well as paper, pens and pencils for note-taking and sketching. Many also brought cameras and tripods to track their work and set a perspective, a cloth rag, reference object, yardstick and sunscreen for daytime hours.

There were blazes of tangerine-red, lightning-bolt yellow, dreamy sapphire-blue and all the other hues of the color spectrum.

This year, organizers set up lights for black-and-white events held Friday and Saturday nights.

The color creations included a goddess and her pet lion, a poster of last year’s Disney-hit animation "Up," a space-age wizard and traditional hearts, butterflies and flowers. Artists were able to choose to fill 24- or 48-square-foot pavement sections with a chalk painting of their choice.

Off to the side, a small parking lot near an antique-store was transformed into a grid where children by the hundreds painted inside smaller spaces.

Artists who opted to be judged were in the running for awards.

Winning artists were announced at the conclusion of the events on Sunday.

Jesus Gutierrez of Murrieta, who was identified as a featured artist by event organizers, created a version of Mexico artist Jorge Gonzalez Camarena’s 1946 original piece called "Women with Prickly Pear," which was part of a Advertisement

Primus Golf Academy 1930s and 1940s Mexican Calendar Girls collection.

"My Grandmother still has some of the original calendars," Gutierrez wrote in an e-mail after the event. "I love his work because of the bright colors and beautiful faces." 

Temecula is where Gutierrez had his first street painting experience.

Five years ago, he won Temecula’s "Best Newcomer" award, and since then he has captured two "Best of Show" honors.

He usually works by himself or with the help of his wife, Rosemary Gutierrez, and 3-year-old son, Diego.

This year, he painted with his brother-in-law, Albert Ybarra, and his relative’s 11-year-old son. The pair lives in Los Angeles.

Gutierrez said he performs in six to eight street festivals a year throughout Southern California. He likes the Temecula event because it is a family-oriented show.

"I enjoy street painting because it’s a good way to show what I can do," he wrote. "And, I love the interaction with the people."

When he is not painting the streets, the self-taught artist paints murals, portraits, and children’s rooms.

Gretchen Stoiber of Temecula discovered the event while she was in Old Town celebrating her birthday with her husband last Saturday night. She enjoyed the experience so much that she brought her 9-year-old son, Jamie Robinson, to the festival the next day.

"I was excited to bring my son," Stoiber said. "He’s won a couple of contests where we used to live in Oceanside."

The boy soon plunged into the fun. Crouched on a piece of carpet, he drew a cream-colored flower that resembled a daffodil. After he finished, the mother and son pair took a stroll around the festival as it came to a close. They admired several of the finished pieces as they walked about.

"Mommy, why don’t you try it?" Jamie asked.

"Honey, I can’t draw sticks," she said, downplaying her artistic talents. "Maybe, I could draw the (outside) box."

Jamie agreed the freedom of the free-flow environment offered anyone the ability to create whatever he or she desired.

"You could do anything," Jamie urged his mother.

"You can draw anything, too," she replied.

This year’s award winning street painters

• Best of Show – Gayle DuRivage of Menifee, "Meditations"

• Best Youth – Alina Bartolini-Verna of San Diego, "Raven"

• Best Newcomer – Norberto Villez of Murrieta, "Portrait of Inspiration"

• Best Black and White – Cecelia Linayao of San Diego, "The Color of Beauty"

• People’s Choice (tie) – Lee Rupp of Winchester, and Rebecca Hayes-Johnson

• Comeback Award (tie) – The Rice Family/Stephen Tawater of Sun City and Mackenzie Tate

Ralph Love Plein Air winners

• Best of Show – Gabriel Baber, "Cottage #2"

• First-place – David Musser, "St. Catherine’s Rose Garden"

• Artists’ Choice – Shawn McKelvey, "Come and Sit a Spell"

For more information, contact organizer Melody Brunsting at (951) 678-1456 or the city at (951) 693-3952.

Further event details can also be found at www.temeculacalifornia.com.