The Kiwi Coloring Corner - Calling all creative kiwis! Join in a workshop made for those who seek to improve in the arts.

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It is with a heavy heart and brings great displeasure to announce the Kiwi Koloring Korner will no longer be issuing art challenges. Due to some life altering circumstances and dwindling participation, it is in my, and everyone's best interest to allocate that time to something more fulfilling. I want to thank everyone who has participated and hope you all have enjoyed the content provided by talented artistes on the farms.

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Just kidding, faggots. Although I would like to level with everyone for a moment this week, tldr at the bottom.

I've contemplated quite a bit over how the KKK has been progressing since its conception, and while I have enjoyed the creations everyone has made, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't bothered by the diminishing submissions.
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Now, obviously life circumstance itself can explain why: people have been increasingly busy, job/school/etc. However, what has been going through my mind is how intricate and more demanding I've made some of the challenges from people. It no longer is this learning or exercise for people, but more so requests for people who seem more than competent in drawing. While this may offer a good way for experienced people, I see fewer and fewer submissions from others that are at my stage or newer participating. 38 people voted for the palette restriction, and 11 people participated at the time of writing, the way I'm designing these challenges just isn't connecting with everyone.

My other issue is that the challenges have relied on using lolcow themes as a crutch to make them more appealing or interactive for people which seem to have an opposite effect. In truth this has kind of derailed the whole premise of the KKK into being a lolcow draw-a-thon. This is partly due to my having to rush some of the challenges due to my own poor time management. The lolcow prompts were supposed to be like spice you add every so often, and here I poured the whole container in the mix.

Moving forward, I'm going to re-restructure how these challenges operate ie: being more technical in design ie: a return to form. Challenges are going to be less frequently based on lolcows and the forum, although they will have their moments. I'm also going to look to poll more often to see if the exercises are actually helping people, the reasoning is because it's very hard for people to share critique. It takes time trying to think of a response that not only means something constructive, but advice they can act on, which is why so few have gotten it. Not to mention just how many people ask for it in submissions.

TLDR: Consider the challenge this week a spare, take time to catch up on other challenges if you haven't gotten to them, or just take it easy until the next one. I'm going to try something different, sorry if this comes as a disappointment.
-DT
 
Regarding the change in format and it being too exclusive to non-artfags, would it be worth considering a tiered style of challenge? Like how you'd handle a project with the base level minimum viable product, extendable goals if you reach MVP early or want to challenge yourself, and then advanced goals for people who want to suffer/show off.

To give a practical example of what I mean:
MVP: Draw anything you want using only a biro pen
Extra goal: Relate your drawing to a lolcow/preset theme
Advanced goal: Commit to a specific style of drawing (cross-hatching, pointillism etc)

That's just off the top of my head, but structuring it this way might help encourage other people to get involved because they're not bound by as many rules as in previous challenges.

I do also like the idea of taking it back to basics with fundamentals challenges. A perspective challenge could be cool, and you could tier that by starting with one-point perspective, then moving up to two and three which make things much harder.

That's my thoughts on the matter any way. I really enjoy this thread so even if I end up being the only one taking part I'd like the challenges to continue.
 
I appreciate that you've made this thread. It's gotten me to make art regularly again. It had been a solid year since I had last tried to do something digital. I was losing motivation for my metal works as well.

This is just my two cents. it might be beneficial to use a basic art class curriculum as an outline/guide. Not that the thread has to be as in-depth as a full on art class, it might make things easier to plan out (this week shading techniques and/or basic forms, next week basic environments like a city or road over a hill, color theory application, and so on).

Something else to try is require people to make a criticism of the last challenge they (or another person) did. For example, looking at the first piece I did I could've had thinner lines and bolder colors. I've realized I also gravitate towards characters like slobber mutt and the kiwi because I'm intimidated by human anatomy.

Whenever you make a special challenge that's specific to lowcows or holidays, don't be afraid to post a community announcement. The DND one deserved more attention.

I'm excited to see how you rework the challenges ❤️
 
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Just to put in my two cents, I think limiting the art challenges to be based on lolcow type things sort of discourages people to participate. Sometimes people just want to draw cute anime girls or something aesthetically pleasant you know? I know I said would would participate but I've been busy with real life stuff.
 
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Just to put in my two cents, I think limiting the art challenges to be based on lolcow type things sort of discourages people to participate. Sometimes people just want to draw cute anime girls or something aesthetically pleasant you know? I know I said would would participate but I've been busy with real life stuff.
But almost none of the challenges were lolcow themed (except for the medallion, so 1/6 of the challenges so far).

The "lolcow" ideas by OP were posted as a mere suggestion. If you want to improve this, then maybe add other suggestions (which they also did), so I don't see the problem in regards to this.
 
Sometimes people just want to draw cute anime girls or something aesthetically pleasant
There's hardly anything stopping you from doing that. If you really want, you can incorporate anime gorls(or anything else you want) into any challenge currently posted.
 
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That's just off the top of my head, but structuring it this way might help encourage other people to get involved because they're not bound by as many rules as in previous challenges.
I like the idea, just wonder if challenges can get away with not having a visual sample for each tier otherwise id have to make not just the challenge card but 3 images per challenge to give people something to look off of. I already draw slow as shit so I'll simmer on it.
Something else to try is require people to make a criticism of the last challenge they (or another person) did.

don't be afraid to post a community announcement. The DND one deserved more attention.

it might be beneficial to use a basic art class curriculum as an outline/guide
This is a good one, "give the submission above a positive and negative criticism" or something they liked and disliked about it.

The tipping point was that the DND one had not only a post in community feature thread and just didn't get as much of a turn-out as the previous challenges, it was primed with a voting thread. It's a shame because I think I spent the most time trying to create that one out of all the others. A lesson learned for sure.

Honestly thought about ripping lessons out of a few books I have and condensing them, I'm no teacher so trying to not be retarded in designing them is already a tall order.
I think limiting the art challenges to be based on lolcow type things sort of discourages people to participate
Appreciate the feedback. I had hoped that it would incentivize if they thought of an idea that would not only fit the challenge, but align with a lolcow they enjoy reading about. It did feel like asking for too much at times or at least so frequently.
 
just wonder if challenges can get away with not having a visual sample for each tier otherwise id have to make not just the challenge card but 3 images per challenge to give people something to look off of.
I dunno about everyone else, but I'd be fine with you providing generic existing examples rather than having to create your own from scratch, then you could take your time and submit your own stuff with the rest of us.

For example with the perspective drawing thing I mentioned I found this video that explains the basics of 1-3 point drawing in a minute:
And this example on Google images:
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Keeping it basic like this might also help encourage people to participate because you're only giving them the bare minimum they need to know, so even if they only wanna submit a bunch of cubes they drew that's cool.

If it helps you could also consider asking a few of us to take turns being in charge of the challenge so you're not having to do it all on your own. We could set up a rota so everyone knows ahead of time when they'll be the one to come up with the challenge.
 
The tipping point was that the DND one had not only a post in community feature thread
Oh damn :( I didn't realize. I normally see your announcements via watching the thread. That's super disappointing. I don't blame you for not being as detailed in the future. If it means anything it was by far my favorite challenge.


Honestly thought about ripping lessons out of a few books I have and condensing them, I'm no teacher so trying to not be retarded in designing them is already a tall order.
It's nice that you have access to textbooks, but I agree it would be a pain to have to go through them. If you feel lazy, try to have chatgpt spit out a super condensed course outline. Then double check it against your books. Here's something I was able to get it to generate as an example:
### **Level 1: Foundations **
#### *Goal:* Learn basic techniques, materials, and fundamental skills.
- **Drawing Basics**
- Line types (contour, gesture, implied lines)
- Shading techniques (hatching, cross-hatching, stippling, blending)
- Basic shapes and forms (spheres, cubes, cylinders)
- Still life drawing (simple objects with light source)

- **Perspective & Proportion**
- One-point and two-point perspective
- Drawing basic environments (rooms, streets)
- Human figure proportions (simple mannequins)

- **Color Theory & Paint Basics**
- Primary, secondary, tertiary colors
- Warm vs. cool colors, complementary colors
- Simple color mixing exercises with paint (watercolor, acrylic, or gouache)

- **Art History Introduction**
- Overview of major art movements (Renaissance, Impressionism, Surrealism, etc.)
- Study one famous artist per week and recreate a small portion of their work

---

### **Level 2: Developing Skills (6-8 weeks)**
#### *Goal:* Improve control, observation, and artistic decision-making.
- **Advanced Drawing & Shading**
- Drawing more complex forms (drapery, glass, metal reflections)
- Experimenting with charcoal, ink, and colored pencils
- Portrait drawing (basic facial features, emotions)

- **Perspective & Composition**
- Three-point perspective
- Composition techniques (rule of thirds, balance, focal points)

- **Painting & Color Mixing**
- Creating value scales with paint
- Limited palette exercises (e.g., using only 3-5 colors)
- Still life painting

- **Art History & Inspiration**
- Deeper dive into a movement of interest
- Copying a famous painting but in a different medium

---

### **Level 3: Creative Exploration (8-12 weeks)**
#### *Goal:* Experiment with different media and develop personal style.
- **Advanced Figure Drawing**
- Gesture drawing for movement
- Anatomy basics (muscles, hands, feet)

- **Mixed Media & Texture**
- Collage and mixed media experiments
- Using unconventional tools for texture

- **Painting & Digital Art**
- Introduction to digital drawing (if applicable)
- Creating expressive pieces with color and brushwork

- **Art History & Interpretation**
- Compare two artists with different styles
- Make an artwork inspired by a historical piece but in your style

---

### **Level 4: Personal Projects & Portfolio (Ongoing)**
#### *Goal:* Create finished pieces and refine personal expression.
- **Finalizing Techniques**
- Working on a series of related artworks
- Exploring themes that interest you

- **Portfolio Building & Presentation**
- Choosing your best pieces for a portfolio
- Writing an artist statement

- **Final Art History Study**
- Looking at contemporary artists
- Understanding art critique and self-reflection

I'm not sure what else I could say. I don't think your challenge intro needs to be changed. The setup of (intro, image examples, submission format) works well. I adore your custom art, but don't feel obligated to do it for every challenge if you start feeling burnt out.
 
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Title: Medallion of the true Avatar
medium: paper, pencil, blingiest golden gel pen I found for little over a dollar
challenge name: KF medallion challenge
description: Medallion appropriate for the One who trully likes Ultima and felt the 9-th entry in his heart. Digital input doesn't feel right for me as of now, so I'm back to this untill I figure it out.
time: ~30 minutes
art critique: ye
permision to use: ye
theme:
Future prompt:
 
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Does this count as art? It's an edit more than anything, but no harm no foul in putting it here.
I edited a frame from that video Vice did on ISIS rule in Raqqa for the FallenChungus thread with GIMP 3.0. The top right logo was easy to nail but the subtitles couldn't be replicated so I settled for outlining them. In the original video the subtitles use the same font but there's no outline, instead there's a subtle dropshadow to the right of each letter. For context, the image on the right is what the font regularly looks like.1745165994738.webp1745166543232.webp
 
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This isn't too late to fit in here, right? Happy Friday/Easter Monday all! In the interim of the KKK getting back on it's feet, it feels appropriate to celebrate one of the few vestiges of wholesome traditions with an Design-A-Easter egg. Something simple to pass some time, we'll throw all the rules out the window for now. Just make the kiwi farms an egg. For those who didn't get any eggs, enjoy one I've made personally for you all. It's kind of more like a Fabergé egg which only makes it more fancy.


Figured I'd post when things were close to being ready. For those who care, disaster struck as Null decided to rework some of the forum and broke shit, the heat sensors on my pc decided it was kiwi summer and fried not only the CPU, but the GPU with it, among other things.

We'll be back in the saddle in the upcoming month, @Oliver Onions has something cool to share soon. Thanks for hanging in there regardless.:)
 
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Just to update everyone, since DT has returned with a challenge I'm going to give you all some time to make eggs (which I'll also be doing) and probably post my challenge next Monday or Tuesday.

I've also been discussing setting up a group chat with anyone in the thread who's willing to volunteer to be challenge master whenever Double Taps is unavailable or just needs a break. There will be no rota, just think up some different challenges (we can discuss them in the chat) and have them ready to deploy as required.

If you'd like to volunteer please DM me and I'll get the group chat set up. Realistically I'm only looking for 2 or 3 people as well as myself since it's not going to be a hugely labour-intensive responsibility, but all are welcome.
 
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