A Live Drawing Event & Fundraiser

The next Monster Drawing Rally is quickly approaching! Mark your calendars for Friday, July 11, 2014, 6:00 – 11:00 PM at the Verdi Club.

Southern Exposure's Monster Drawing Rally is an annual live drawing event and fundraiser. Demystifying a process that usually takes place in the privacy of the studio, the Monster Drawing Rally allows spectators to observe artists in the act of creation in the public domain. In keeping with Southern Exposure's mission to provide an environment accessible to art and artists, the Monster Drawing Rally sets the stage for extraordinary interaction.

Providing the basic necessities of the drawing practice – pencils, charcoal, pens, markers, ink and paper – Southern Exposure creates the context while artists (usually over 130 artists) create the content of the drawings. Each evening consists of four one-hour shifts that each feature approximately 30 artists drawing simultaneously. As the drawings are completed, they are hung on the walls and made available for purchase. The Monster Drawing Rally provides a unique opportunity to watch a drawing come to life, and to purchase a work of art minutes after its completion. Proceeds from the event provide direct support for Southern Exposure's programs, and by proxy, artists, youth and new ideas.

An Expanding National Network

The response to the Monster Drawing Rally continues to grow; the fundraiser is now a national model. SoEx has partnered with a growing network of nonprofit arts organizations throughout the country, such as The Armory Center for the Arts in Los Angeles, Midway Center for Contemporary Art in Minneapolis, 1708 Gallery in Richmond, MOCAD in Detroit and Spaces in Cleveland, helping them establish their own Monster Drawing Rallies. Southern Exposure is proud to share our successful fundraising models and community-building strategies with similar artist-centered organizations, and is committed to serving as a resource for the national visual arts community through this and other programs.