The 2023 Art Crawl came to a close on Monday January 30th, and with thousands of entries to consider, our judges had their work cut out for them. Before we crown our creative champions, we want to thank everyone who participated this year. From the lurkers sending upvotes from the shadows to the artists that took the plunge and shared your work with the world, you all played a part in making this possible.
If you were one of the courageous creatives who leaped, we hope you enjoy the shiny new Art Crawl trophy! You earned it. Like last year, our judges were tasked to pick three winners – 1 grand prize of $100 to the Imgur Store and 2 prizes of Imgur Emerald and Stickers for the runners-up. With thousands of submissions, it was still a herculean task to select just three. Our judges this year were EvilCatCreations, the9mm, and Joyousjoyfuljoyness. Without further ado, let’s see what they selected!
First up, we have the crafty EvilCatCreations’ picks.
EvilCat’s first-place pick is a collection of pieces in a peculiar style that looks almost embroidered. @Patricbates‘ style caught our judge’s eye, with them calling it “whimsical” and stating, “I feel cheated for only having discovered them now.”
Our runners-up were @Tominator2000 in 2nd and @MaelleValantin in 3rd.
Tominator’s Studio Ghibli-inspired mouse was a “one-of-a-kind masterpiece that has me totally in awe.” according to our judge.
Maelle’s lifelike paintings were praised as “nothing short of remarkable to look at” and “truly stunning work that draws you in for a closer look.” Great work, you two!
Next up, we have our foil print pro @Joyousjoyfuljoyness‘ picks.
Their first-place pick is a pristine wood carving almost indistinguishable from an actual tomato plant. Made by Imgurian @acadianmushrooms, according to judge Joyous, this piece was “Simply stunning, rendered perfectly, and looks alive and delicious.”
Our runners-up here were a lovely pastel painting from @dorkyducks and an award-winning sea turtle topiary from @hunnycat.
The 2nd place painting impressed our judge with “the perfect emotion captured, perfect texture, and perfect composition. Such a quiet and tender moment was rendered flawlessly with the fuzzy edges of the pastel.”
Hunnycat’s topiary won 1st prize in a local event, and here on Imgur, left our judge “In awe of this adorable living creation. It’s whimsical, magical, and wonderful.”
Last but not least, we have the selections from Imgurian artisan @the9mm.
Our first-place pick was an accidental discovery. After making the borders of a painting a bright red color, Imgurian @claireleeartist noticed a nice backlight effect on a white wall. This impressed our judge, who had this to say: “I couldn’t stop thinking about this work. You can even see the pink peering through in parts of the waves and sky, which ties the pink “glow” into the entire piece. Quite different in an excellent way!”
Imgurian @awarmgarlicyurt‘s embroidered otter and @dontbeahorse‘s oil paintings were our runners-up.
The embroidery excited our judge, who “loved the expression and the optical mixing of greens and blues to get the final result akin to fur” and thought “the color palette was expertly chosen and was well planned and well lit. Amazing job, truly!
Our final judge selection was an underdog that “Went wildly unnoticed” and had “Beautiful brushwork and overlaying of colors.” The skill on display was impressive, and our judge “Really loved the use of oversaturated colors for optical mixing in it and the differing textures.”
Congratulations to our winners! You all made something wonderful and worthy of praise.
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From everyone on the Imgur team, thank you all for taking part in the 2023 Imgur Art Crawl. We were consistently impressed by your collective ingenuity, creativity, and imagination. A special thanks to our judges for taking the time, and the impossible task, to pick our winners. If you’d like to catch up on some of the magnificent art you may have missed, check out the tag here.
Art Crawl will return in 2024.
Benjamin Baskett
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