speedpainting

Speedpainting is a painting technique and performance practice in which an artist produces a finished work within a restricted time frame, typically ranging from several minutes to a few hours. The term is used across traditional media, such as acrylic, oil, watercolor, and digital painting, and often appears in live demonstrations, competitions, and online videos. In traditional settings, speedpainting emphasizes rapid planning, decisive brushwork, and efficient layering, while in digital work it translates to fast stroke work, blocking in shapes, and iterative refinement within a time box.

History: Speed demonstrations date back to art schools and studios where instructors would demonstrate technique in real time. With the rise of online video sharing and streaming in the 2000s and 2010s, speedpainting became a common format for content creators, with artists posting time-lapse or real-time speedpaints.

Technique: A typical workflow involves choosing a subject, establishing a thumbnail or composition quickly, blocking in values and shapes, assigning limited color palettes, and building up forms with broad strokes before refining details. In digital speedpaints, layers, pressure-sensitive brushes, and stabilizers are often used to maintain pace.

Materials: Traditional speedpaints use acrylics or oils on canvas or board, with a limited palette and pre-planned palette. Digital speedpaints use graphics tablets and software such as Photoshop, Krita, or Procreate.

Impact: Speedpainting provides educational value by revealing process and technique, and it offers entertainment for audiences. Critics say it can favor speed over finish and may de-emphasize deliberate craftsmanship in favor of spontaneity.