Wings in Bloom

At Chalk-a-Block, Sunday, September 28, 11am - 3pm Old Town North, Alexandria

Wings in Bloom at Chalk-a-Block

There is something endlessly captivating about butterfly wings—how delicate, colorful, and unique they are, like nature’s own brushstrokes caught mid-flight. Our exhibit, “Wings in Bloom,” celebrates this magic through an art-making experience where participants create butterfly wings filled with vibrant patterns, textures, and personal imagination.

The process begins with simple outlines of butterfly forms, but what happens inside those shapes is as individual as a fingerprint. Each set of wings becomes a canvas for bold colors, surprising textures, and organic rhythms of line and form. Much like a Rorschach inkblot, the mirrored symmetry of the wings opens a world of interpretation—some see abstract landscapes, others see flowers, ripples, or even dreamlike creatures hidden in the shapes.

To enhance the organic feel of the artwork, artists often accent the wings with black ink or other contrasting hues. Tracing along the natural veins of the wings, these dark lines bring definition, rhythm, and movement, while also heightening the play of colors within. The result is both delicate and dramatic, a small reminder of how beauty is often found in contrast.

For our younger visitors, we’ve created blank butterfly templates to encourage experimentation. Children can fold, dab, paint, or draw their way into their own “wings in bloom,” exploring how symmetry creates magic and how accidents often lead to the most delightful surprises. The joy is not only in the finished piece but in the playful discovery of pattern and texture, and in realizing that no two butterflies—whether in nature or in art—are ever alike.

Let us know by email anila@aline-architecture.com if you would like to purchase a set or two for your kids to create their own wings. These art kits will be available for purchase exclusively at the Chalk-a-Block event, Sunday, September 28, 2025, 11am - 3pm (Old Town North).

• Blank butterfly templates to encourage experimentation - Free (come experience some hands-on art making at our station)

• Original painted Butterflies $10 each, examples below.

• Art kits / Craft Globes and Butterfly templates ($10 each) will be offered exclusively at the Chalk-a-Block event—don’t miss your chance to get one! Donations are welcomed.

• Small gifts, 3D printed ornaments, greeting cards, art and crafts for purchase ($10--$20 each - special event)

• Payment can be made to via cash, check to ALine Architecture or Venmo @Anila-Angjeli We promote Art & Crafts - Proceeds will go to making more community art.

Original Painted Butterfly 1

Original Painted Butterfly 2

Original Painted Butterfly 3

Original Painted Butterfly 4

Original Painted Butterfly 5

Original Painted Butterfly 6

Chalk-a-Block in Old Town: A Butterfly Takes Flight

Sunday, September 28, 2025, 11am - 3 pm in Alexandria’s Old Town North, the streets will bloom with color at the Chalk-a-Block event.

Chalk A Block Map - September 28, 2025 - 11am to 3pm

We're delighted to participate among many artists. We’re bringing art to the pavement with a large-scale chalk mural—a butterfly in full, radiant flight, surrounded by bold floral patterns that spill across the ground in a dazzling array of color. This queen butterfly will add to our "Wings in Bloom" - Butterfly Collection.

The design will be a feast for the eyes: brilliant blues, fiery oranges, vivid pinks, and greens blended into unique textures that make the butterfly’s wings shimmer with life. Just as in our “Wings in Bloom” exhibit, the chalk art will play with symmetry, organic forms, and vibrant contrasts—but here, the canvas is the street itself.

Part of the magic of chalk art is its impermanence. The colors glow vividly in the moment, catching light and shadow, until wind or rain carries them away. That fleeting quality makes the experience all the more special—an artwork shared with the community, alive only for a short while.

The Chalk-a-Block event is also about participation. Visitors can watch the arts come alive in real time, meet the artists, and even pick up chalk themselves to add a little flourish to the streetscape. It’s an open-air celebration of creativity, community, and the joy of making art in unexpected places.

So bring your curiosity, your camera, and maybe even a little chalk-dust spirit. The butterfly and flowers waiting on the pavement will be as vibrant and unique as the people who come to see them.

“Wings in Bloom” is more than an exhibit; it’s an invitation to wonder. By making art that echoes the beauty of butterflies, we honor the delicate balance of nature and the endless creativity within ourselves. Each wing painted is a small act of joy, a bloom of color, and a reminder that art, like life, flourishes in diversity and individuality.

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ALine Architecture is a full-service Architecture and Interior Design studio based in Alexandria, Fairfax County, VA. Beyond our core design practice, we also enrich the community by creating and sharing engaging, artful projects that inspire and delight.