With winter in full swing and the holiday season upon us, you may find yourself feeling inspired, seeking out creativity or in the mood to try something new and challenging. It might also be the perfect opportunity to take part in something with your family or friends, by involving them in fun, creative activities while everyone is home for the holidays. Regardless of your what you’re in the mood for this winter season, december art challenges (and art challenges in general) are a great way to make a positive change in any situation!
Put simply, art challenges are a way to get you creating art on a regular basis and has been proven to be the perfect outlet for stress and anxiety for any and every one. Essentially, art challenges inspire creativity and allow you to be creative in a fun and stress-free way. In addition to this, art challenges also work to stimulate your imagination as well as act as a form of catharsis. If you’d like to read more on this and learn about what art challenges are, who they’re for and why people participate in them, you can check out our art challenge article. Consider stepping out of your comfort zone this December and take on an art challenge! What better way to end the year and step into the new than with a creativity burst?
Do you feel like releasing your inner artist? Being creative with your family and friends? Getting back into the swing of things or maybe developing a new skill? Well, if you answered yes to any of those, then you’ve come to the right place. Consider putting some time aside this December to be creative every day throughout the month, develop your art skills or maybe form a new, positive and productive habit!
We’ve put together a list of some art challenges taking place in December that you can take part in. These challenges are even more enjoyable when done with family and friends, so feel free to involve your loved ones too. Let’s dive in!
December Art Challenge by Xquissive
This year we have finally released our own art challenge. Any suggestions for a better name are welcome, but after Xcember, Themecember and many more boring names nothing better came out.
Anyway, the Xquissive December Art Challenge has a different touch than the regular art challenge. Since December is quite a busy month for the most of us, we thought it would be a good idea not to go for daily prompts, but weekly prompts. The prompts are also different than you are used to, because instead of a prompt, we want to tickle your imagination with a short sentence. Reading or hearing a short sentence stimulates your brain, because whether you like it or not, you will visualize it. So take your time… close your eyes and imagine that scene…
When you are done, grab any creative gear you have and get creative. There are no rules, so grab your pencils, brushes, 3d software, Photoshop, camera or cosplay costume, anything goes!
We would love to see your interpretations, so tag us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #Xcember or even better @xquissive.
Tinkerlab
With chilly, cozy and sparkly December right around the corner, Tinkersketch invites any and all creatives to join them on the December Art Challenge. Designed to get your creative ideas flowing, the prompts provided by the official prompt list are maker words that help partakers dream up new ways of interpreting art materials and processes, with an added touch of holiday spirit and seasonal fun!
The TinkerSketch December art challenge is put together by Tinkerlab and runs throughout the month of December! Each day you’ll be given a new prompt which you can then interpret in any way you’d like. It’s all up to you – the possibilities are limitless. Use these prompts to inspire creativity in those around you, whether it be in your home, your class or simply amongst your friends and family. This month, the Tinkersketch prompt list provides you with maker words that allow you to think outside the box when it comes to art materials and processes. The most important rule in this challenge is to have fun!
If you decide to take part in this challenge, you’ll need to carve out a minimum of around 5-10 minutes each day during the month to create artworks inspired by the official prompt list. If you decide to share your work online, make sure to use the hashtag #tinkersketch to share your work with other fellow creatives and get involved in the artist community.
There are no restrictions regarding medium for this challenge, just remember to use the prompt list and create something every day. The challenge makers suggest having a sketchbook or ream of paper, pens, pencils, paint, brushes and some glue or tape. You could also source some collage materials like newspapers, magazines or scrap paper. The rest is up to you! As we mentioned before, because this challenge prides itself on being stress free, make sure to push yourself but don’t hesitate to give yourself a day off if needed. This is about enjoying yourself!
Drawcember
It’s likely that many of you will be spending most of your cold, wintery days indoors. Thankfully, Drawcember has got you covered! Daily illustrations during the month of December is a great way to not only pass the time but also refine your creative skills.
Drawcember, taken from the words ‘draw’ and ‘December’ is a daily art challenge run throughout the month of December. Artists all around the world take part in the challenge, creating illustrations every day. The Drawcember Challenge was created in 2012 by Disney Create and has gathered other organizers and sponsors over the years. Unfortunately, last year there was no official sponsor, however, the challenge still has a huge community of creatives that will continue to participate each year.
There aren’t any rules regarding medium, subject matter or composition! Any medium is allowed, and you don’t need to follow the official Drawcember prompt list (the official Drawcember accounts seem to have been abandoned). There are a number of prompt lists put out by creatives within the community that you can use – what’s important is that you keep up the habit of creating an illustration every day during the month.
Past and Alternative Prompt Lists
If you decide to share the work that you’ve created this December with your friends, family and fellow creatives, use the hashtag #Drawcember and #Drawcember2020. By sharing your art, you’ll immerse yourself within the Drawcember artist community, get a chance to show off your work, as well as view the work of others.
Are you worried about how you will manage to find time every day for this challenge? We have some tips for you! Our key tip would be to manage your time well and plan ahead. There will come a day (or a few days) in the month of December where you feel incredibly demotivated and uninspired – but that’s okay! Drawcember is about having fun and working on your skills, so make sure to find a plan, timetable or process that works best for you. Flow with what you enjoy and feel driven to do. Remember to be patient with yourself and by the end of the month you’ll have a collection of work you’ll be incredibly proud of.
Decembird
Artists Virginia Greene and Justine Lee Hirten created this bird inspired challenge after thoroughly enjoying the famous October art challenge Inktober just a few months prior. And so, Decembird was born!
The challenge was designed specifically for other bird-inclined artists and those who would like to develop their bird drawing skills further.
Luckily, there is an official prompt list that you can follow everyday throughout the month. However, following it is not essential, as long as you reach the end goal. At the end of the month you should have 31 drawings of birds by the time that the new year rolls around. Unfortunately the prompt list haven’t been updated since 2016, but that shouldn’t be something to hold you down!
If you decide to take part in the challenge make sure to document every part of the process! If you decide to share your work or progress online with your fellow creatives, make sure to tag your Decembirds with #Decembird and #decembird2021 if you want to take part!
Let us know in the comments what your favourite art-challenge of this month is! Which one are you participating in or did we miss one? If you want to learn more about the basics, make sure to read our art challenge guide.
Do you want to improve your drawing skills? Make sure to read our article where we take a look at the Best Art Classes you can follow online. Combining an art class with an art challenge is a great way to get started! You could also take a look at our curated top 10 of drawing books to help you improve your drawing or for extra inspiration or new techniques.
If you’re curious about other art challenges coming up this year, make sure to check out our overview of yearly art challenges or our art challenge calendar. If you are looking for drawing inspiration, make sure you check out our drawing ideas generator.
Courses & Tutorials
Why not improve your skills or learn some new incredible techniques by taking a course? See all our courses or check out one of these selected courses here:
Resources
Interested in taking part in any of these challenges this month? We’ve got some resources just for you to give you a kick start!
Traditional Drawing equipment
Check out the sketchbooks, pencils and other tools below that will help you build a daily routine in practicing your creative skills.
Digital Brushes
If you’re a digital artist, make sure to check out these great Photoshop and Procreate ink brushes from Grutbrushes. These realistic, responsive and natural brushes will inspire you without a doubt. Grutbrushes offers a lot of free samples, so you can try anything without risk. Check out our Grutbrushes review if you’d like to know more and see more (free) samples.
Digital Hardware
A drawing tablet could definitely help you in your creative flow too. Most drawing tablets are touch sensitive and are highly accurate. The main advantage of a drawing tablet is the natural feeling when drawing. They are perfect for creating detailed illustrations, drawings or digital paintings.
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