It was a dark and stormy night. Ok, it really wasn't. It was only dark. Ok, it really wasn't dark, inside. But, it was night. And, there were twelve artists that came to the Prince George Public Library to light it up. And, light it up they did, at the 7th annual Prince George Art Battle or Art Battle 2020.
Twelve artists in 3 rounds creating 20-minute masterpieces from a blank 24x30 canvas. TWENTY MINUTES people! Oh, all that while 200 people circle, the music is thumping, lights beating down the combatants and photographers only feet away. The word intensity is an understatement. Twenty minutes may seem like an eternity in the dentist's chair (sorry dentists) or on a Friday afternoon at work, but when faced with a blank canvas, it goes as quickly as, well, really fast, just really really fast.
Images courtesy of the Prince George Citizen and James Doyle
The rules;
Artists have 20 minutes to create their competition artwork.
Artists must use the blank provided canvas as the surface for their artwork.Â
Artists are encouraged to bring their own mediums and tools. A limited set of acrylic paint is provided by local Art Battle producers. Artists are encouraged (but not required) to bring outside medium — Allowed mediums include: acrylic paint, ink, oil paint, charcoal, pen, pencil, watercolor, and more. Water based aerosol and airbrush are permitted by Art Battle, but may be restricted depending on venue requirements.
We didn't have any aerosol users but it might be fun for an outside event!
The talent, this year was outstanding. The best that I had seen. We had, Carla Joseph, Karen Erickson, Michael Kast, Harshpreet Kaur, Viv Fox, Emily Holmes, Erin Stagg, Ekaterina Filatov, Mandy Paavola, Audrey McKinnon, Sebastian Nicholson and Jennifer Pighin. Although, each year there is a wealth of talent. It was really good to see some new faces, some fresh you creatives ready to lay down the paint and show that there is upcoming young talent in the city
There had been rumblings in the past regarding the way votes were tallied and even my own integrity being called into question as one of the vote tabulators. I have to tell you, the best thing about this even is that people vote for what they feel is the best paining (art being subjective) and not necessarily for a friend or family member. Hell, the first year I competed, my own wife voted for one of my competitor's paintings. Deservedly so! Mine was, to put it mildly, bad.
We, all of us, organizers, volunteers, artists, and especially the spectators are lucky, considering the state of COVID -19, to have gathered for this amazing event. Thank you to all. I can't wait until the next one! Here is a little secret, there is one coming up in the fall. A demonstration Art Battle. WIll you be there?