After painting for 100 consecutive hours, Nigerian art student Chancellor Ahaghotu has broken a decade-old record for the longest painting marathon.
Chancellor, a sophomore at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, far surpassed the previous record of 60 hours, set by Roland Palmaerts (Belgium/Canada) in 2013.
Over four days, Chancellor worked tirelessly to produce 106 pieces depicting all subjects, including celebrities, food items, plants, animals, and much more.
At the 60th hour, when he surpassed the previous record, he painted a broken record player.
“One thing I love about the paintings I created is that they were representing my different moods and how I was feeling when I created them,” Chancellor explained.
As with all ‘longest marathon’ records, the challenger is permitted a five-minute rest break for every continuous hour of activity – these rest breaks can be accumulated if not taken. They were the only times Chancellor could use the bathroom, eat, or sleep.
Chancellor says he battled fatigue around the 88-hour mark, but he was committed to reaching his target of 100 hours, so he didn’t think about ending the record attempt.
He initially planned to do one painting per hour, so before beginning the record attempt, he prepared 100 canvases with sketches ready for him to paint.
However, during his paint-athon, he completed them all with a few hours to spare, so he produced a series of impromptu still lifes before finishing with a painting of an exhausted person.
“There was joy and celebration when I completed the 100 hours,” Chancellor said. “It was a new experience for me, and I’m so glad I completed the 100 hours.
“This helps me feel a very high level of personal achievement, build up my career as a reputable artist, and pay a service to my school and country.”
