24 Hour Draw-a-Thon is a free, all ages arts extravaganza that happens annually in November beginning at 6:30 am on a Saturday morning and continuing until 6:30 am the next morning. Visitors can come and go at any time, draw on the walls and floor which are covered with paper and cardboard or participate in one of the many artist led workshops held throughout the day. Draw-a-Thon’s drawing-centered workshops are designed for participants of any skill level and include bookmaking, mailable art, recycled paper making, screen printing, interactive sculptures created from repurposed materials, a live figure drawing workshop, animation, drawing game shows, drawing karaoke, and the signature Draw-a-Tron 3000, a machine that can draw anything you want. Draw-a-Thon attracts about 1,500 participants each year. In addition to the annual event, Antenna has recently piloted an in-school program in which Draw-a-Thon artists transform a school’s cafeteria or gym into an arts funhouse and provide a field day for students full of art workshops.

In December 2020, in lieu of the in person event, Draw-A-Thon artists created and distributed hundreds of free drawing activity kits throughout New Orleans. In this way, we were able to celebrate the joy of drawing while social distancing.

Mapping Our Dreams: A Big Book of Activities!

Here’s a digital version of the big book of activities included in our drawing kits from 2020 Draw-A-Thon!