Thousands Dive Into Westville’s ArtWalk

Painters — professional and otherwise — took turns with a vibrant palette of colors, filling in the outlines of a mural of Westville Village drawn by artist and art teacher David Sepulveda. It was one of the main points of interest at this year’s Westville ArtWalk, which drew thousands to the neighborhood on Friday and Saturday.

Sepulveda (pictured) said he wanted to develop a project that would bring artists together. ​“It’s a way for artists to meet each other and have dialogue,” he said, but added, ​“We opened it up to everyone because of the level of interest.”

“Our surroundings are often so familiar we don’t notice them,” he said. So he drew his mural to be accurate in every detail, posting color photos along its length so participants would know exactly how to paint in the outline. He said the project is aimed at promoting a sense of place, and was inspired by the Connecticut Main Street program, which designated Westville Village among the recipients of a state arts grant. (Read about that here and here.)

Software engineer John Loxsom (pictured on the chair) is also a sculptor — in ice and in marble. He at first hesitated to say call himself an ​“artist,” but then took ownership of that avocation, saying Sepulveda had encouraged him to follow his passion. ​“One winter I had 350 ice balls in my yard” from which he sculpted various creations. he said. ​“David helped me move a granite boulder last year. He said, ​‘You have to make a bird bath’ from it, and I did.” He judged his input on the mural to be ​“of grade school quality,” but that didn’t stop him from fully enjoying himself. ​“We are very proud of our neighborhood,” he added. ​“It’s diverse and we get along.”

Larry Morelli held his brush in such a way that a reporter pegged him as a pro. He is, doing figure painting in acrylic as a member of the Kehler Liddell Gallery. He was less than enthusiastic about the mural painting, saying a friend talked him into helping out. ​“But now that I’m doing it, I like it,” he said.

Sepulveda said it would probably take another community gathering — maybe an upcoming farmers’ market in Edgewood Park — to complete the mural, which would in turn generate more community-building. Where will it go? He doesn’t know. ​“I have no sense of ownership,” he said. That decision will be made by the Westville Village Renaissance Alliance, whose president, Gabriel da Silva, said they haven’t considered all possible venues. Da Silva added that Mayor John DeStefano, who was hobnobbing with the artists and vendors on Saturday afternoon, had expressed an interest in having it displayed in City Hall.

Da Silva estimated that 10,000 people had participated in the festivities, between the gallery openings on Friday night and the day-long activities on Saturday.

Besides the mural painting, music and theater were conducted on three stages, and crafts activities (like this bangle-making table) abounded in the park. I the heart of the Village two rows of white tents offered watercolors, jewelry, ceramics, quilting, bouquets of organic wildflowers for Mother’s Day.

Some demonstrated the so-old-it’s‑new art of hula-hooping (click on video for a demonstration), while others participated in the newer pastime of scaling the parks department’s climbing tower.