This week’s art challenges took a bit of art and research, so I learned some interesting tidbits of information.

The first challenge of the week was “The Beauty of Decay.” The creator of the challenge loves to explore abandoned buildings like an empty hotel in the Cyprus Mountains, a mafia-related vacant mansion in PortugaI, and a secret soviet ghost town in Latvia. I had the idea to show a crumbling cathedral and was hoping to show a broken statue of Mary and baby Jesus, but AI is programmed not to be disrespectful of religious relics, so it was tricky to get anything like I was imagining.

6/28/26 “Faith Decay”

The next challenge was the great outdoors and could be hiking, camping, hunting, or just exploring nature, but the idea was to demonstrate awe for the majesty of nature.

6/29/26 “Nature Awe”

The next one was called “The Evidence” and challenged us to create an image that makes the viewer wonder, “What happened here?” There is evidence of a happening, but the questions are not necessarily answered. Something strange, mysterious, or magical has occurred.

6/30/26 “Where Are The People?”

The next day’s challenge was inspired by the upcoming July 4^th holiday and the fact that this is an international group, so we were asked to think of something we like about where we are from to share with others about the culture, traditions, history, or food, etc. I thought a long time about something I really like about the ideal of the Texas I am from.

Here is what I wrote along with my image submission: I was born in Texas, and though I am not at all proud of some of the things happening in our politics, schools, and courts, I was raised by good people who love and welcome the well-intentioned with open arms. My family is multi-racial, multi-cultural, and more open-minded than some. I love the old-fashioned gentleness, belief in being a good neighbor, reciprocating kindness, and being part of community. People where I live still tip their hats, wave to strangers, and welcome diversity. I guess it’s those sincere, truly kind values that I am most proud of.

7/1/26 “Howdy Stranger”

Next up was a complex one. It was about Japanese yōkai, which are supernatural entities, spirits, and monsters in Japanese folklore. This one I had to research and finally settled on one I found creepy and fascinating.

Here is what I included with my image submission: According to Google – “A Noppera-bō blends perfectly into human society. It usually positions itself on quiet roads at night with its back turned away from an approaching traveler, often disguised as a distressed young woman crying. When the concerned traveler approaches and asks what is wrong, the yōkai turns around and dramatically wipes its face with its hand, instantly causing its eyes, nose, and mouth to vanish. According to legends, they often work in pairs or groups. If a terrified victim runs away and finds a local merchant or bystander to tell them what happened, that bystander will listen quietly before asking, ‘Did the face look something like this?’—and then wipe away their features too. In many traditional tales, the Noppera-bō is not an independent ghost, but rather the temporary disguise of an animal shape-shifter.”

7/2/26 “Noppera-bō”

The next day was challenging and a little dark. The idea was a precipice overlooking a life-and-death-type decision but finding hope in the darkness. It took a ton of tweaking of the models to get what I wanted. The final result was close.

7/3/26 “To Be”

The next day was about zombies and a unique image related to zombies. I thought about the fact that we don’t often see child zombies and had a really hard time getting any of the models to work with me. There are massive restrictions around any artwork depicting kids and horror, so it was complicated.

7/4/26 “Zombie Playtime”

And here are some of the honorable mentions that I did not submit, but still published on my art website: