Art Battle gives you 20 minutes to paint a masterpiece — and the audience decides who wins

The Art Battle format is simple. Artists paint live in front of an audience. They have 20 minutes to complete their painting. And whoever the audience likes best wins.

The original idea, says co-founder Simon Plashkes, was kind of an exercise in democracy. When the event series was started back in 2009, he says, the goal was to let an audience decide who the best artist is, rather than "the ivory towers and the gated galleries."

In the intervening decade-and-change since its founding, the Battle has gone national — starting with events in Vancouver and Halifax in 2011 — and then international, after merging with a group in New York that was doing something similar. This year's Canadian National Championship, featuring artists who won regional competitions across the country, will take place at The Great Hall in Toronto.

The competition will consist of two 20-minute rounds and one 30-minute round. Winners will get $2,500 and a place at the World Championship. The Toronto championship will also have legendary Canadian singer-songwriter Daniel Lanois and his band help set the stage sonically.

The artists come from a variety of backgrounds. They include both self-taught and formally trained artists, as well as people who work primarily in other media — including things like animation and tattooing — who have branched out into competitive painting. 

"Anybody who's at that [national championship] level, they have incredible fundamental artistic skills," says Plashkes. "But also with timed competition, there's a lot of interesting dynamics that come out. There's an element of showmanship strategy… You definitely need some kind of an 'aha' moment in your work."

Jace Junggyu Kim qualified after winning a regional competition in Vancouver. Kim says he's been drawing his entire life and started his professional career as an animator, but after a while, he found himself chafing at the restrictions of his career. He started participating in Art Battle as a way of introducing himself to the Vancouver art scene. 

"I wanted creative freedom," he says.

Kim says that he has a secret weapon when it comes to competitive painting: he's ambidextrous, using both hands at the same time. Growing up in Korea — where he lived until moving to British Columbia at 15 — his mom tried to make the naturally left-handed Kim right-handed, fearing that he'd be discriminated against. Instead, the training made it so that he can use both.

Kim says that the two hands operate differently. "My genuine expression is always with my left hand; I use my right for more sort of didactic [work]," he explains.

Audiences, he says, always respond well to his work.

"A lot of people appreciate the process," he says. "One of the great things about our model is people being able to witness what is being done, and then they can appreciate the work more… They actually integrate their experience so that they're understanding the work better."

Kervens Fils had to take the long road to the National Championship. After finishing second at a Montreal qualifier, the St-Lambert, Que.-based artist decided to take another kick at the can at an event in Quebec City, where he won and punched his ticket to Toronto. Fils has a day job doing a very different sort of art: he's been working as a tattooist for 10 years. He says he started doing oil paintings six or seven years ago, just as an additional challenge.

Fils says his secret to Art Battle success is practice. More specifically, he gets ready by doing 10-minute paintings at home. By the time he's ready to compete, the Battle's 20-minute clock feels downright luxurious. 

"The extra 10 minutes can just be for finishing touches and stuff," he says, adding that his strategy is to "avoid details at the beginning, start roughly, and then just put the details at the end."

Win or lose, however, Fils says the best part about Art Battle is how — as someone who doesn't usually work in traditional art media — it's allowed him to connect to a larger community of like-minded artists. 

"It's a great opportunity to meet people, to meet new artists and put yourself out there," he says. "I'm not really a 'people person,' but Art Battle really helps with connecting people."