We may have said goodbye to 2023, but we still have a little business to sort out Challenge-wise from last year...
Here is our current Art Challenge state-of-play:
But the Challenge goes on and we continue to look for Theme ideas for out next year of contests.
To help generate as much participartion as possible you might want to consider whether your Theme idea could encompass a range of some of the following:
Once you've thought of something, please post your idea here and feel free to discuss, ask questions and suggest ideas for entries for any of the submitted themes. If we can get a conversation started about the challenge it'll help to get those creative juices flowing.
Themes that have averaged the lowest number of votes in the polls have entered THE NEUTRAL ZONE and are in danger of being eliminated from future polls.
The Current List of Themes:
Specific Show -- Strange New Worlds
Dedicated to art inspired by one specific Star Trek show or era. Each month you have the opportunity to vote for a different era cycling through: TOS/TAS --> TNG --> DS9 --> VOY --> ENT --> MOVIES --> DSC --> PIC --> LDS --> PRO --> SNW --> TOS/TAS --> ...
The More Things Change
Time may move at warp speed, but not everything does. Show us how something Trek has changed over the years - landscapes, buildings, ships, people, beliefs.
The New Next Generation
What's next for Star Trek? Show us what could follow your favorite incarnation of Star Trek or the future of fandom itself: the Next Generation of Star Trek fans.
Beginnings
A New Year is here so taking inspiration from that show us some Trek Art related to new Beginnings. It could be inspired by something from the start of your favourite series or show us the beginning of a new mission, the introduction of a new character, ship or family member.
Tall Tales
Or, a funny thing happened on the way to Delta Vega. Dedicated to those adventures that are the most bizarre and unbelievable, the ones where if you described them to someone they'd reckon you'd done a little too much LDS - Abraham Lincoln floating in space, holograms taking over the Enterprise, being shrunk to the size of a toy, evolving into a lizard?! Or perhaps you can think of something even weirder than those we've seen on the show.
Timekeeping
We know our Starfleet crews get themselves into all sorts of temporal scrapes, but how do they (and other galactic citizens) tell the time wherever they are? Apart from stardates, the odd PADD/viewscreen display, Sisko's Saltah'na clock, and a couple of "antique" 20th century watches, what do contemporary timepieces look like in the Star Trek time periods? Especially those from worlds other than Earth? After all, not everywhere has a 24 hour day...
Not Good Enough
Art inspired by unpopular episodes.
Today Is A Good Day to Die-o-rama
Release your inner child with a diorama demonstrating anything Trek - landscapes, ships, historical moments. Make it or draw it, if you prefer. Mixed media - use any material you want.
Wrong Episode Posters
Have you ever read a synopsis for an episode or movie that only vaguely resembles what you eventually watched? Well, your challenge is to badly interpret the plot of a Star Trek episode or movie and create a promotional poster to advertise it. Maybe you could shift the emphasis of the episode/movie to that of a side-plot or have the main protaganist to be the villain or a minor character. Perhaps, you could swap the genre of the episode entirely: Duet as a musical? The Trouble with Tribbles as a horror?
BackTreking
A temporal agent is tasked with confiscating artwork, photographs, and objects inspired by accidental (Trek) alien contact with Earth. Design an artifact that might raise a few eyebrows if it was allowed to remain behind. (Think something man of that era might have designed, not the object that inspired it - e.g. a painting of a phaser, not the phaser itself.)
Cold Comfort
How is everybody staying warm this winter? Show us your favorite characters cozying up to a fire, enjoying warm beverages, huddling together, etc. Alternately, show us something that can also be described as cold, whether it's Spock's (lack of?) emotions, Deanna's favorite ice cream treat, or a frozen locale.
Insert Spock Here
What would Spock be doing at any given moment in Star Trek shows and movies, were he present for an incident? Put our favorite Vulcan in the picture where he was originally not, whether he would have been lurking in the shadows or actively involved in the action. Alternately, if he was elsewhere at the same moment, show us where and what he was doing.
Rules To Live By
Rules of Acquisition, Lefler's Laws, and more! Illustrate a principle espoused by a character or species and how it might play out in real life, in the Trek universe. (Bonus points if you use an actual episode/film scenario to prove the rule.)
Bones of Contention
What are your favorite Trek characters fighting about? Show us a good-natured squabble, or a knock-down, drag-out brawl...but most importantly, tell us WHY!
Black and White...and Grey
Illustrate something Trek without color. Prove to everyone that Trek looks good, no matter what.
Signs and Symbols
Every good organization has a logo, a banner, or insignia. Design a variation on an already-seen icon, such as the Starfleet Delta or the IDIC (perhaps an earlier version, or a different race's take on it). Or create a flag, symbol, or emblem for a race that currently doesn't have one. Your fanon design might just become canon someday!
[THE NEUTRAL ZONE]
Thrillin' Villain!
SNW needs another villain species! Pick an irredeemable cultural feature (just as for the Cardassians it was fascism, or for the Ferengi it was capitalist greed) and design a new enemy race that embodies it!
[THE NEUTRAL ZONE]
Voting for February's Theme will commence ~18 January. Please post your ideas by then for inclusion in the poll.
Have Fun!
Here is our current Art Challenge state-of-play:
- Voting on December's Challenge, Aliens Stole My Reindeer! is on the it's last call for entries, so get them in quick.
- Also coming to a close are 2023's leftover challenges, Trek Tech It Up and TOS-Up. Final call for entries there, too
- And January's Challenge Theme is Transporter Malfunctions, the main contest thread to be posted by the winner of December's challenge.
But the Challenge goes on and we continue to look for Theme ideas for out next year of contests.
To help generate as much participartion as possible you might want to consider whether your Theme idea could encompass a range of some of the following:
- Skill Level
- Time Commitent
- Media (Physical, Digital, Photochop, 3D...)
- Subjects (Characters, Tech, Starships...)
Once you've thought of something, please post your idea here and feel free to discuss, ask questions and suggest ideas for entries for any of the submitted themes. If we can get a conversation started about the challenge it'll help to get those creative juices flowing.
Themes that have averaged the lowest number of votes in the polls have entered THE NEUTRAL ZONE and are in danger of being eliminated from future polls.
The Current List of Themes:
Specific Show -- Strange New Worlds
Dedicated to art inspired by one specific Star Trek show or era. Each month you have the opportunity to vote for a different era cycling through: TOS/TAS --> TNG --> DS9 --> VOY --> ENT --> MOVIES --> DSC --> PIC --> LDS --> PRO --> SNW --> TOS/TAS --> ...
The More Things Change
Time may move at warp speed, but not everything does. Show us how something Trek has changed over the years - landscapes, buildings, ships, people, beliefs.
The New Next Generation
What's next for Star Trek? Show us what could follow your favorite incarnation of Star Trek or the future of fandom itself: the Next Generation of Star Trek fans.
Beginnings
A New Year is here so taking inspiration from that show us some Trek Art related to new Beginnings. It could be inspired by something from the start of your favourite series or show us the beginning of a new mission, the introduction of a new character, ship or family member.
Tall Tales
Or, a funny thing happened on the way to Delta Vega. Dedicated to those adventures that are the most bizarre and unbelievable, the ones where if you described them to someone they'd reckon you'd done a little too much LDS - Abraham Lincoln floating in space, holograms taking over the Enterprise, being shrunk to the size of a toy, evolving into a lizard?! Or perhaps you can think of something even weirder than those we've seen on the show.
Timekeeping
We know our Starfleet crews get themselves into all sorts of temporal scrapes, but how do they (and other galactic citizens) tell the time wherever they are? Apart from stardates, the odd PADD/viewscreen display, Sisko's Saltah'na clock, and a couple of "antique" 20th century watches, what do contemporary timepieces look like in the Star Trek time periods? Especially those from worlds other than Earth? After all, not everywhere has a 24 hour day...
Not Good Enough
Art inspired by unpopular episodes.
Today Is A Good Day to Die-o-rama
Release your inner child with a diorama demonstrating anything Trek - landscapes, ships, historical moments. Make it or draw it, if you prefer. Mixed media - use any material you want.
Wrong Episode Posters
Have you ever read a synopsis for an episode or movie that only vaguely resembles what you eventually watched? Well, your challenge is to badly interpret the plot of a Star Trek episode or movie and create a promotional poster to advertise it. Maybe you could shift the emphasis of the episode/movie to that of a side-plot or have the main protaganist to be the villain or a minor character. Perhaps, you could swap the genre of the episode entirely: Duet as a musical? The Trouble with Tribbles as a horror?
BackTreking
A temporal agent is tasked with confiscating artwork, photographs, and objects inspired by accidental (Trek) alien contact with Earth. Design an artifact that might raise a few eyebrows if it was allowed to remain behind. (Think something man of that era might have designed, not the object that inspired it - e.g. a painting of a phaser, not the phaser itself.)
Cold Comfort
How is everybody staying warm this winter? Show us your favorite characters cozying up to a fire, enjoying warm beverages, huddling together, etc. Alternately, show us something that can also be described as cold, whether it's Spock's (lack of?) emotions, Deanna's favorite ice cream treat, or a frozen locale.
Insert Spock Here
What would Spock be doing at any given moment in Star Trek shows and movies, were he present for an incident? Put our favorite Vulcan in the picture where he was originally not, whether he would have been lurking in the shadows or actively involved in the action. Alternately, if he was elsewhere at the same moment, show us where and what he was doing.
Rules To Live By
Rules of Acquisition, Lefler's Laws, and more! Illustrate a principle espoused by a character or species and how it might play out in real life, in the Trek universe. (Bonus points if you use an actual episode/film scenario to prove the rule.)
Bones of Contention
What are your favorite Trek characters fighting about? Show us a good-natured squabble, or a knock-down, drag-out brawl...but most importantly, tell us WHY!
Black and White...and Grey
Illustrate something Trek without color. Prove to everyone that Trek looks good, no matter what.
Signs and Symbols
Every good organization has a logo, a banner, or insignia. Design a variation on an already-seen icon, such as the Starfleet Delta or the IDIC (perhaps an earlier version, or a different race's take on it). Or create a flag, symbol, or emblem for a race that currently doesn't have one. Your fanon design might just become canon someday!
[THE NEUTRAL ZONE]
Thrillin' Villain!
SNW needs another villain species! Pick an irredeemable cultural feature (just as for the Cardassians it was fascism, or for the Ferengi it was capitalist greed) and design a new enemy race that embodies it!
[THE NEUTRAL ZONE]
Voting for February's Theme will commence ~18 January. Please post your ideas by then for inclusion in the poll.
Have Fun!
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