Here is our current Art Challenge state-of-play: Voting on March's Challenge, "Retro Rockets" is underway. And April's Challenge Theme is "Inspired by Laura", the main contest thread will be posted by the winner of March's challenge. As we think about putting our own spin on Laura's designs for April's Contest, we can also bring our creativity to bear in think up some more ideas for our May Theme vote. 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. The themes in last month's THE NEUTRAL ZONE did not get enough votes to be saved and so have been LOST IN THE DELTA QUADRANT making way for two more Themes that averaged the lowest number of votes and are now in danger of being eliminated from future polls. The Current List of Themes: Specific Show -- Deep Space Nine 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. 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.) 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! Texture Is For Kings Engage your creative juices to create something Trek that's so tactile in appearance that you could reach out and touch it (if it weren't for that pesky computer screen in the way, that is!) To Seek Out New(born) Life What did your favorite characters look and act like as babies? How would our grown-up characters interact with any infantile organisms they might encounter? Your artwork must have a baby/babies, or something related to infancy. Memory Alpha Roulette Hit the "Random Page" button on Memory Alpha (top left next to the logo, hover over "Explore" and click on "Random Page"). The first two in-universe articles you get are the subject of your artwork (or at least the first one you like). Gift Shop Goodies Who doesn't love souvenirs? Imagine what visitors, passengers, and tourists might bring home as a memory of their stay on the Enterprise, visit to DS9, vacation on Vulcan, etc. Whether it's an actual piece of the ship, a funny t-shirt, a pretty postcard, or something more outrageous, one thing is certain; it'll always remind you of your visit. World Buildings Dust off your set square and set up your drafting board. Show us some of the Trek buildings we never got to see. What does the Temple of T'Panit look like? Where does the Department of Temporal Investigations hang up their clock? How about Station Salem-One prior to the attack? What did Zefram Cochrane High School look like when Geordi attended it? Or create your own building for your favorite species' education, business, religion, etc. [THE NEUTRAL ZONE] Leap of Faith (Of The Heart) Celebrate the leap year by taking a leap of faith! Prove why "risk is our business" by depicting tricky maneuvers, scary encounters, and characters beating the odds. I'm Ready For My Close-Up, Mr DeMille Technology, people, places - we've seen no end, but have we seen through the deck 14 forward view ports of the Enterprise-D? Or zoomed in on the eastern shoreline of that inland circular sea on Betazed? Or been up close and personal enough with Big Merp to see if his skin is made up of finely interlocking scales? Show a close-up of something/one from Star Trek which includes details (of your own design) that have yet to be seen on screen. [THE NEUTRAL ZONE] [LOST IN THE DELTA QUADRANT] 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. 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! [LOST IN THE DELTA QUADRANT] Voting for May's Theme will commence ~17 April. Please post your ideas by then for inclusion in the poll. Have Fun! Spoiler: Archived Holiday Themes CHRISTMASTIME THEMES: That Rings A (Jingle) Bell "Hmmm...I remember this, but I can't quite put my finger on where I've seen it before." Place something that looks uncannily Trek in a place you'd never expect to find it. Bonus replicator credits if it's hiding in a holiday-themed setting. Every Problem Has A (Re)Solution What New Year's resolutions are your favorite characters making for themselves and each other? Depict your favorite Trek characters facing their fears, learning a new skill, or quitting an old habit. As Prophecy Foretold Portray a scene from a species's religious texts or show a character taking part in a spiritual activity, visiting a religious site, etc. Season's Greetings Show us what you imagine our favourite Star Trek characters might send or receive in the way of gifts or greetings cards at the this time of year - a family picture of the Rikers, a Quark's Bar gift voucher, a personalised coffee mug? Christmas Crossover Taking inspiration from your favourite festive stories, movies, music videos (?) show us how they might manifest if they played out in the Star Trek Universe. Which character would be your choice for Scrooge or what would happen if Wesley was left Home Alone? VALENTINE'S DAY THEMES Where My Heart Is, Beyond Antares How do characters/species show their love for each other? Friends, parents and kids, true loves...anything you want. Hearts and Flowers Happy Valentine's Day! Incorporate imagery of hearts and flowers into any Trek-themed project you choose. (Doesn't necessarily have to be directly related to Valentine's Day) Be Mine, Space-Time Valentine What kind of Valentine cards and candy would Trek species dole out? Design a card or gift, alien/Starfleet style.
I'll put the voting thread up tomorrow, but in the meantime I'll throw in an idea: An Unexpected Perspective Mostly we see the Star Trek Universe from the point-of-view of our heros, but how do others perceive their life in the future? Show us an interpretation of life in the Trekiverse from a different perspective, perhaps from that of the villains or a small child, animals, space-aliens or pets (Livingston, Porthos, Grudge...) or maybe even from that of technology or the Starships themselves - the stranger, the better.
I've got one! I thought of this one for last month's theme thread but never got around to suggesting it: The Catwalk What fashion can be found sashaying down the catwalks (runways for the Americans ) of Cait, Fillandia (Ariolo), and Janus VI? Would a Xindi-Aquatic wear Tholian silk? And what would an Aurelian wear to pop to the shops? Your task is to design an item of apparel, an outfit, costume or uniform (not necessarily Starfleet) for a non-humanoid Federation citizen or other denizen of the Star Trek Universe. Preferably being worn by said non-humanoid!
Nice, thanks for that @Cyfa. The Theme voting thread is now live: https://www.trekbbs.com/threads/may-art-challenge-vote-for-your-theme.316594/