The horror… The horror.
Seems like there’s a lot of it around, these days. From pandemics and war to corruption, lies and the death of truth, it’s hard not to feel like we’re watching the end of the world in real time, while (as a popular meme says) somehow still having to go to work.
Welcome to the apocalypse.
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I believe in staying informed about what’s going on in the world. But, doing so has been hard on the ol’ “reason to keep getting out of bed in the morning” reserves lately. Everything seems terrible. Mostly because it is.
I felt the need to do something about that (for my own mental health and to try to inject something good into the world), and realized that the things that feed me and keep me sane usually revolve around creativity and art in all its forms.
I am not an artist by any stretch, but in addition to my love for consuming and enjoying others’ art, I do like to dabble in making art, despite not being very good at it. Finding the time and making myself do that is sometimes a struggle, and I do better when I’m given parameters - an assignment, a theme, some kind of structure, and maybe even a deadline.
I asked a couple of friends if they’d be interested in joining me in committing to weekly art assignments or “missions” as our own way of being defiant in the face of the apocalypse and its horrors. They stupidly said “yes.”
So, now we’re taking turns assigning art projects each Thursday, with our submissions due the following Thursday. The point isn’t necessarily to make “good” art - it’s just to commit to doing something creative with some regularity, and to enjoy seeing the art that others create.
If, like us, you feel the need for something fun and creative amongst the horror, you’re more than welcome to join us.
You’ll find the “rules” (loose as they may be) below.
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Each Thursday, a new “mission” (art assignment) will be posted below.Participants can devote as much or as little time and effort as they want and/or can afford that week. Spend five minutes jotting something on a napkin if that’s all you have time or energy for, or get carried away with a project and spend days on it - any amount of effort is welcome.
The point is not necessarily to make good art – it’s just to be accountable enough to others that you force yourself to make art of some kind each week, to share it with others, to get to enjoy others’ art, etc.
No one has to give any critique or suggestions or feedback at all. Of course you’re welcome to tell someone you really like their work, but this is not about criticism or even artistic feedback - it’s just for fun.
Submissions are due each Thursday by 7:00 p.m. (Eastern Time), but you can send them earlier that day or even earlier that week if you want.
For now (until/unless I come up with a better vehicle), projects are submitted by email to artpocalypsethursdays@gmail.com.
Attach a JPEG or PDF file of your artwork (if the assignment was written work, you could paste it in the body of the email instead of attaching, if you prefer).Along with your submission, include your name or (preferably) an alias you want to go by (Some of us feel more comfortable posting our art publicly under an alias instead of our actual names and, besides, it’s more fun that way). Bonus points if your alias is a reference to the movie Apocalypse Now.
Submission of your art is considered permission to include it on this website and/or associated social media accounts.
Don’t want to have your art viewed by the public? (even under an alias?) Totally understandable. Feel free to lurk and just enjoy what others create, or use the weekly missions to create art for yourself that you don’t share with us.
Submissions will be posted on this site for all to view - hopefully sometime on the Thursday they are due - perhaps slightly later when I’m busy. :)
The Missions:
Yorgos Pitch: January 29-February 5, 2026
The Mission: Oscar nominations came out recently, and Yorgos Lanthimos has another movie in his signature, shall we say, “unique” style nominated for best picture. This week, write a pitch for a movie (essentially a synopsis of the plot) in the style of Yorgos. If you’re not familiar with (or don’t care for) him, choose another director to emulate in your pitch and let us know who it is…
Snowpocalypse: January 22-29, 2026
The Mission: With most of us in the path of Winter Storm Fern, this week’s assignment is to make art from snow. We’ll keep this wide open - sculptures made of snow, snow men, art made IN snow, snow melted to use in inks… whatever you like…
Blue Collar Poetry: January 15-22, 2026
The Mission: In honor of one of our very own Artpocalypsers, who will be celebrating her new published collection of poetry at a book launch held on this assignment’s due date: Write a poem from the perspective of a blue collar worker - about their life, some aspect of their job, or a related subject. Bonus points if your poem helps elicit a distinct sense of place…
Caricature: January 8-15, 2026
The Mission: Draw a caricature of someone - a person you know, a celebrity, someone you see in a magazine - whatever. Submit your caricature and a photo of what the person actually looks like…
Burn List: December 18, 2025-January 8, 2026
The Mission: We’re all busy during the holidays, so we’ll take three weeks instead of one for this assignment. Make a list of things you want to leave behind in the new year. Tangible, intangible, behaviors, thoughts, habits, people, whatever. Decorate that list in some artistic way. Burn the list, and scatter its ashes to the wind. Feel cleansed (whether you believe in this kind of thing or not) and ready to start fresh…
Sedari Christmas: December 4-18, 2025
The Mission: Write a short, humorous essay (in the style of David Sedaris or your own favorite humorist) about some part of Christmas or the holiday season…
True Thanksgiving: November 20-December 4, 2025
The Mission: Since the next submission day would fall on a holiday, we’ll extend this assignment to be due the week after. People tend to romanticize the holidays. For this assignment, draw or otherwise create a picture that more accurately depicts how your Thanksgiving goes…
The Art of Relaxation: November 6-20, 2025
The Mission: Take time to relax this week, even if it’s only for a few minutes. Create art of any type you like, somehow born out of your relaxation - inspired by it, related to it, about it, caused by it, whatever…
Turn the Clocks Back: October 30-November 6, 2025
The Mission: Write a poem or song inspired by Daylight Saving Time or “turning the clocks back”…
Pumpkin Design: October 23-30, 2025
The Mission: Draw (or carve, if you feel ambitious) three unique jack-o-lantern faces…
Spooky Photo: October 16-23, 2025
The Mission: Take a photo that feels spooky - creates a foreboding atmosphere, feels unsettling, or just generally seems creepy…
Rocktober: October 9-16, 2025
The Mission: Paint a rock or rocks with a design of your choice. Leave them in a public place where someone will find them…
Autumnal Playlist: October 2-9, 2025
The Mission: It’s playlist time again! This week, put together a playlist of songs that feel like Autumn to you and share it for the rest of us to listen to…
Sing a Song of Invention: September 25-October 2, 2025
The Mission: Write a song, poem, or ode to an invention that came from your home town…
Angels in the Architecture: September 11-25, 2025
The Mission: Take photos of architecture that speaks to you. Create artwork inspired by that architecture. Submit both the art and the photo(s)…
Continuous Line Drawing: September 4-11, 2025
The Mission: Draw something (person, animal, object, whatever) using only one continuous line - never lifting your pencil/pen/etc. from the paper from start to finish…
Line & Photo: August 28-September 4, 2025
The Mission: Combine a line from a famous poem with a compatible photo that you take this week…
Cootie Catcher: August 7-14, 2025
The Mission: Make a “cootie catcher” fortune teller. Find a way to pick your numbers or other choices at random (online randomizer, dice, pieces of paper in a hat, whatever) and use the cootie catcher to make an actual decision for you this week. Submit a photo of your catcher, along with proof of or a short story about how the decision impacted your week…
Homemade Ice Cream: July 31-August 7, 2025
The Mission: It’s summertime, and it’s been ridiculously hot where I live, so we’re going to stretch the definition of “art” this week. Make your own, unique, homemade ice cream flavor. Submit photos of the process and the final product, as well as your review of how you thought it turned out…