October Art Challenge
Inspire, Expand, Practice
Drawing challenges, 30-day workouts, money-saving challenges… Everywhere you look, there’s a 30-day challenge! I plan to participate in Inktober this year and have gotten friends and family to join me. I hope this community will inspire me to complete the drawing each day. Will you join me? If you need inspiration, read how 18th-century Chinese scholars used a drinking game to write poetry.
I spent part of today with my son at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. One of the pieces we studied was Jade Mountain Illustrating the Gathering of Scholars at the Lanting Pavilion, 1790. It is the largest piece of historic carved jade outside of China. Interestingly, it depicts a gathering of literary scholars playing a creative drinking game.
Wine cups were floated down a small winding creek as the men sat along its banks. Whenever a cup stopped, the man closest to the cup was required to drink it and write a poem. In the end, twenty-six of the participants composed thirty-seven poems.
Even Chinese Literary Scholars appreciated an art challenge!
Why Participate in Art Challenges?
They help kick-start flagging inspiration and kindle your creativity
They expand your boundaries and challenge your comfort zones as an artist
They set you to a schedule, which can translate into better productivity – in the professional world or just for yourself and your work
They focus you on making art
They let you practice, practice, practice!
They help you get feedback, critique, and guidance on your work
They expose you to lots of other artists and their work
You become a part of a larger art community
They open up new possibilities
They are loads of fun!
(artsideoflife)
The month of October belongs to the arts. People celebrate all types of arts, support artists, and raise awareness more than usual. In 1993, the tradition of National Art Week turned into a National Arts and Humanities Month in the U.S.A., which established the foundation of the biggest coast-to-coast collective recognition of arts and culture. Later, the celebration of creativity during the month of October spread all over the world, and especially all over social media, where it became known as #artober.
Here are some fun art challenges for you to do this month!
These are not art contests! They are just challenges focusing on spending more time doing what you love, following a theme, practicing different techniques, and celebrating art. Please share your creations! I’d love to see what everyone is up to!!
Inktober
The brainchild of Jake Parker, Inktober was first held in October 2009 and, after more than a decade, is still going strong.
Drawlloween by Brian Soria
His prompt list includes Halloween topics like pumpkins, ghosts, spiders, and haunted houses.
Drawtober 2023
It's a great art challenge with fewer prompts but following a big theme with a huge response every year.
Witchtober
It was created by a self-taught freelance artist from Budapest, Hungary, known as Aria - Illustration.
Do you love these and want to build your practice throughout the year? Artist and Illustrator Iva Mikles has a very extensive list: 70+ Art Challenges You Must Try.
Please share your drawings with me by replying to this post and tagging my Wonder Wander Facebook or Instagram pages!
Love this invitation Shannon- planning to join you in some daily soon.