Hey! ❤️ If you’ve joined Messy Art Squad but haven’t posted or said much yet, I wanted to let you know about a little change I just made. You can now post and write messages from Level 1! 🎉 Before, you had to reach Level 2 before you could post, so if you were wondering why you couldn’t write anything — that was the reason. 😄 So if you’ve been quietly hanging around in the background, now you can jump in! Come say hi, show us what you’re making, tell us what you’re working on, or just pop into the chat. We’re here to make art together. 🎨 ☕ Every Tuesday, 18:30–19:30 Paris time, we have Coffee & Art. We make art together, chat and explore a different topic each week — colour theory, negative space, acrylics, watercolour and more. 🎨 Open Studio is available 24/7, and I’m in there a few times a week. Other artists pop in too, so you can work alongside each other, have a chat or simply make your art together. 🎯 We also have monthly challenges. This month was our animal challenge, and you can already vote for next month’s theme: flowers, fall, Halloween, whimsical, children’s illustrations or home. 🌸🍂🎃 So if you’ve been silent until now… come out of hiding. 😂❤️ You’re already part of the Squad. Now come join us and make some art! Valérie 🎨

Drop your work, get honest feedback from the community (Be kind ;)

Okay Squad, I made you something. 50 sketching prompt cards — sorted into 10 categories (Observe, Composition, People, Texture, Light & Shadow, Travel, Nature, Story, Practice, Mindset). Print them, cut them wonky, shuffle them, and pull one every morning. No thinking, no “which one is easiest,” just pull and draw. Here’s the thing though — this isn’t just a fun little challenge (even though it is one). Sketching is genuinely one of the best things you can do for your art, and there’s real science behind it: • Regular observational sketching sharpens your eye for proportion, light, and detail — and that skill carries over into everything else you make, painting included. • Sketching engages both sides of your brain at once — the logical side and the creative side — which is part of why it feels so good and clears your head. • Even one short session of art-making has been shown to boost people’s confidence in their own ability to actually finish and succeed at what they set out to make. So this isn’t “just doodling.” It’s foundational reps. Every fine artist you admire has thousands of ugly little sketches behind their good work — you’re just starting yours today. Here’s how we play: 1. Pull a card (or comment a number 1–50 and I’ll tell you what you got 👀) 2. Set a timer, draw for the suggested time — 5 to 25 min, no pressure 3. Post it here with your card number 4. Go look at what everyone else did with the SAME prompt — it’ll never be what you expect There is no wrong way to do this. A stick figure counts. A page you hate still counts. You showing up with a pen is the whole point. Who’s in? Link to the 50 sketch prompt: https://www.skool.com/responsibly-messy-artists-8983/classroom/76b07627?md=2734cd89eae746128d3621e8ccb41d51

(Please put the paintings you make in 30 brush strokes under this post. ❤️) Ready to loosen up, paint more confidently, and stop overthinking every brushstroke? Welcome to the 30 Brush Strokes Challenge! For the next 30 days, you’ll create small paintings using no more than 30 brush strokes. That’s it. No perfect paintings. No endless tweaking. No pressure. Just 30 intentional marks. Why this challenge? Many artists improve by painting more. But you’ll often improve even faster by painting with limitations. When you only have 30 brush strokes, you can’t overwork your painting. You learn to: - paint with confidence instead of hesitation - simplify what you see - make stronger decisions - let go of perfectionism - trust your instincts - finish what you start You’ll probably be surprised by how much your paintings improve after just a few weeks. The rules 🖌️ Maximum 30 brush strokes per painting. 📏 Keep it small (A6, A5, postcard size… whatever feels easy.) ⏱️ Spend around 5–15 minutes on each painting. 🎨 Use any medium you like. 📸 Share your paintings in the group whenever you’d like. Need ideas? Paint whatever inspires you! For example: - fruit - flowers - birds - pets - landscapes - your morning coffee - your favorite mug - vegetables - mushrooms - trees - people - houses - clouds - seashells - a toy - your paint brushes - something from your garden - something completely from your imagination Missed a day? No worries. This isn’t about having a perfect streak. Life happens. Skip a day if you need to, then simply continue the next day. Progress is built over time—not by being perfect. One more thing… This is not a competition. There are no winners. No prizes. No judging. The only person you’re challenging is yourself. At the end of the month, you’ll have a collection of small paintings that show your growth—and that’s the real reward. Who’s joining? 🎉 For inspiration a link: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DaQo8uaRsYW/

If you’ve enjoyed being part of this community, I’d love to hear about your experience. I’m working on making this community sustainable so it can continue to grow, host challenges, and create an inspiring place for artists. Hearing from you would help more than you know. 🙂 If you’d like to help, could you answer one or more of these questions? ✨ What made you join this community? ✨ What do you enjoy most? ✨ Has it inspired or motivated you to create more? ✨ Have you learned something new here? ✨ How would you describe this community to another artist? ✨ Would you recommend it to a friend? Why? You don’t have to answer every question—a few sentences are more than enough. With your permission, I’d love to use some of your words as testimonials on the community page so new members can see what it’s really like here. Thank you so much for being part of this little creative corner. It genuinely wouldn’t be the same without all of you. ❤️