The people behind Arts Society King wanted to get people engaged with art despite a worldwide pandemic.
That’s where the original art challenge came to fruition.
“When the coronavirus came along and everything started getting shut down, I sort of said to the board of directors, ‘We should do some sort of art challenge,’” said Michele McNally, vice president of Arts Society King.
McNally was inspired by the rainbows children had made and put in their windows as a way to lift spirits during the pandemic.
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“I thought, ‘The kids are doing all this artwork, why doesn’t Arts Society King put out there that we’re going to have an original art challenge?’ And it doesn’t just have to be paintings. It can be poetry, it can be TikTok videos, writing short stories, whatever you like,” she said.
The response from the artist community in King has been amazing, McNally said.
A special Facebook page was made for the challenge where the art is posted.
The challenge has garnered about 40 submissions through Facebook or Instagram by tagging Arts_Society_King.
McNally said she was hoping more youth and children would participate in the challenge, but that hasn’t been the case.
There isn’t a prize to be won because McNally didn’t want to make it a contest with an end date.
“I decided not to make it like a contest with a prize at the end with a deadline and hopefully it would just perpetuate itself,” McNally said.
Established artist Bill Lunshof decided to participate in the challenge as a way to express his passion for painting.
“I just thought it would be fun to post and see what happens,” Lunshof said.
Lunshof is a longtime member of Arts Society King who has been painting on and off for about 10 years and has been doing it full time for the last four years.
Lunshof uses oil paints as his medium. He paints in a style he calls “looser.”
“I’m trying to paint in more of a plein air style where somebody paints outside and paints quickly. I’m trying to loosen up my style a little bit and get away from all the detail,” he said.
Lunshof paints every day and his style has progressed naturally.
“I think (painting) is just my passion. It’s how I express myself,” he said.
Arts Society King is a volunteer-run not-for-profit that promotes, celebrates and advocates for art in King Township.
STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Reporter Laura Broadley noticed social media posts from artists in King and wanted to find out what it was all about.
