April Art Challenge Gallery is Live ✨ + May Challenge Theme: Idols — Male & Female


Hello, Reader,

Hope you've been drawing lately. Two things to share today — the April gallery is live, and May's challenge is officially open.


✨ April Art Challenge Gallery is Now Live!

Theme: Fantasy Adventure Characters

The April Art Challenge gallery is now live on our Student Art page. April's theme was Fantasy Adventure Characters, and our students built out a full party of swordsmen, mages, rangers, and beastfolk. Every piece feels like a frame from a story already in motion.

Every piece represents someone who took on the challenge and shared their work with the community. We are incredibly proud of the creativity and skill shown in this collection.

🔗 View the gallery here: https://animeartacademy.com/p/student-exhibition

All featured artworks are promoted through Anime Art Academy's 100,000-subscriber email newsletter and to our 300,000 social media followers. Your work will also be shared with manga publishers and industry professionals in Japan — real eyes from the industry will see your art.

⭐ Bonus for paid course students: Your submission will also be shared directly with manga editors at Japanese publishing houses.


🎨 May Art Challenge Theme: Idols — Male & Female

Idol anime is having a moment. Actually, it's been having a moment for years — and it keeps getting bigger. *Oshi no Ko* broke through to people who had never touched the genre before. *Ensemble Stars* built one of the most dedicated fan communities in recent memory. *Aikatsu!* has been running so long it's basically a rite of passage.

What makes idol characters so good to draw is the contrast. The polished center who hides something underneath that smile. The rookie who hasn't locked in their stage persona yet. The veteran who has been doing this for years and still gets nervous before the curtain goes up. The wild-card member who doesn't fit the mold and doesn't care.

For this month's challenge, draw your own original idol character. Their costume, their energy, their story — all yours. Are they mid-performance, practicing alone at 2am, or just before the show starts and everything goes quiet? Show us the idol only you could create.

📅 Deadline: June 10th, 2026

📝 How to Submit

Discord: monthly-art-submissions
https://discord.com/channels/963616021258846229/978104621119725668

OR

Email: contact@animeartacademy.com

📌 Full submission guidelines: https://animeartacademy.com/p/nextart


We can't wait to see what you create next. Your art deserves to be seen.

Anime Art Academy Team

contact@animeartacademy.com

https://animeartacademy.com/


What courses are available at Anime Art Academy?

At Anime Art Academy, we offer a range of courses and course styles to fit all of our students' needs!

How to Draw Anime and Manga

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How do our pro illustrators help students?

The following are just a couple of examples of the feedback our lecturers give in the comments section of our lectures! Of course the corrections are accompanied with written explanations, helping students to understand how to improve their work. This feedback is included in all of our paid courses!


See you at the Academy!

Anime Art Academy Team

https://animeartacademy.com/