​Here’s how it works:

• Participation in this reading challenge is limited to Madison Library District patrons ages 15 and older. Artists must have a current library card to be eligible.
• The adventure starts January 1, 2025, and ends at 7:00 pm December 30, 2025. Sign up any time, but only books read between those dates will count. All completed books must be reported before 7:00 pm on December 30, 2025, to be valid.
• Artists who report their completed portfolio of all 10 Canvases before 7:00 pm on December 30, 2025, will receive the 2025 Armchair Traveler prize.
• An artist’s portfolio consists of 50 challenges divided into 10 themed Canvas projects. To complete each Canvas, read a book for each specified task listed on the Canvas page.
• When you’ve finished a book, visit the Circulation Desk at the Library to collect the appropriate sticker and get one step closer to completing that Canvas.
• Once an entire Canvas has been completed, readers will earn a small prize and an entry into the grand prize drawing.
• Canvases, including any portion of a Canvas, can be completed in any order, but all five parts on a Canvas must be completed before that specific prize can be awarded.
• Prizes must be picked up by the participant or a family member.

Finished early? Readers who have completed the Apprenticeship challenge are eligible for the Armchair Traveler Master Artist edition. The final day to sign up for this bonus challenge is December 1, 2025.

CANVAS 1 & 2: Primary and Secondary Colors

These two challenges are cover challenges. For each task, read a book with a cover image that is more than 50% of the color listed. This can include varying shades of that color, but the majority of the cover must be the color specified.

​Canvas 1: 

Primary Colors

• Red
• Blue
• Yellow
• Black
• White

​​Canvas 2: 

Secondary Colors

• Purple
• Green
• Orange
• Pink
• Brown

CANVAS 3, 4, & 5: 2D and 3D Art Mediums

These three challenges are also cover challenges. For each task, read a book with an object on the cover that matches the medium listed. This can include an artwork of that medium, tools used to create pieces in those mediums, or a person in the process of creating in that medium.

For the Nature/Vegetation task on Canvas 5, read a book with something on the cover that uses nature or plants in an artistic way.

​Canvas 3: 

2D Art Mediums

• Pencil Drawing
• Watercolor/
  Acrylic Painting
• Pen & Ink
• Chalk/Crayon
• Spray Paint/Graffiti

​​Canvas 4: 

3D Art Mediums

• Wood
• Metal
• Glass
• Clay
• Stone

CANVAS 6: Literary Arts

This challenge is a subject/content challenge. For each task, read a book that includes the topic listed.

Task one is to read a book about a writer or author.  Task two is to read a book set in a library or about a library in some way. Task three is to read a book that includes an aspect of the publishing industry. Task four is to read a book set in or about a bookstore. Task five is to read a book that includes an aspect related to illustration.

​Canvas 6: 

• Authors/Writing
• Library
• Publishing
• Bookstores
• Illustration

CANVAS 7 & 8: Artists and Authors

These two challenges are related to author names.  For each artist listed, read a book with an author who shares the same initials in any order.

​Canvas 7: 

• Georgia O’Keeffe
  (1887-1986)
• Vincent Van Gogh
  (1853-1890)
• Salvador Dali
  (1904-1898)
• Andy Warhol
  (1928-1987)
• George Seurat
  (1859-1891)

​​Canvas 8: 

• Donato Bardi
  (1386-1466)
• Giovanni Guidi
  (1406-1486)
• Michelangelo Buonarroti
  (1475-1564)
• Raffaello da Urbino
  (1483-1520)
• Leonardo da Vinci
  (1452-1519)

CANVAS 9 & 10: Museums

These two challenges are based on location. For each museum listed as a task, read a book set in that location.  Locations within the United States must be set in the same state to be eligible, and locations outside the US must be set within that country to work.

​Canvas 9: 

• Louvre Museum
  (Paris, France)
• Metropolitan Museum of Art
  (New York City, NY)
• British Museum
  (London, England)
• Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
  (Washington, D.C.)
• Museum of Egyptian Antiquities
  (Cairo, Egypt)