100 heads.

Art challenges, what are they for?

Some artists participate in art challenges on social media. They do this for a few reasons -

1/ to get more exposure and build a following.

2/ to challenge themselves and build skills by exploring a medium or subject more thoroughly.

3/ to create a stockpile of art to exhibit or sell…well that last one might be a natural consequence of the first two.

4/ to be part of a community

There’s probably more reasons, but you get the idea.

Whether the artist makes the challenge up themselves, or borrows it from another artist they are following, isn’t always clear. Like I’m watching an artist on Twitter (X), Richard Claremont, doing a 30x30x30X30 challenge, that’s 30 30x30 works in 30 days - this started off as a “direct watercolour challenge” and it looks like Richard modified this challenge to his oil painting preference.

I’m also watching a couple of artists do the 100 heads challenge on Instagram, that’s 100 heads painted and then put up for sale on their website shop. Jane French, she’s a fantastic portrait artist has painted her 100 heads in oils, framed them all and is selling them for around £490 each, and another artist, Viktoria Malier, is doing hers in oil pastels. There’s more artists doing it if you search the 100heads tag. It looks like that challenge started off as a “100 heads in 10 days challenge”, and these artists have modified it to suit themselves. Whatever the origins of these challenges, they are interesting to watch and a nice way to set yourself up to give yourself a little push, or a workable reason to post lots of art on your socials.

I’ve set myself my own challenge on Instagram - “September 1st to December 1st everyday art post challenge”. That works out to a post a day on Instagram for 90 days, and I’m up to day 55. It doesn’t matter what I post in my challenge, as long as I post something “art”. Within this challenge I’ve painted quite a few heads, so now I’m thinking about making a “100 heads-challenge” album on FB being an extension of my 90 day challenge on Instagram, using the 100heads tag simply because I can.

My latest head:

acrylic painting using Pyrrole red, terracotta gesso, light red ochre, pthalo turquoise, vintage white, white gesso, yellow ochre and Ghost Gum.