Scribble Slam

Scribble Slam — live art battles in Brisbane

Est. 2013 · Brisbane · live art battle

Scribble Slam mascot: a masked green octopus wielding six spray cans, above the hand-drawn Scribble Slam wordmark

The battle between pens, the conflict between brushes, and the pursuit of challenging creativity.

90 minutes◆ one theme◆ two artists◆ one winner
Follow @scribbleslam Facebook
Between battles — follow for the next one
Scribble Slam · live

How a battle works

Two artists. Ninety minutes.
No plan survives the buzzer.

No brief, no prep. A keyword drops the moment the clock starts and the room watches it become something — live, once, and never again.

1

The theme drops

A single keyword, revealed the instant the timer starts. Everyone hears it at once — including the artists.

2

90 on the clock

Two artists, two blank walls, paint flying. A DJ runs the room and an MC runs the mic.

3

Halftime

Grab a drink, talk to the artists, watch the pieces take shape under the lights.

4

The crowd decides

Three judges pulled from the audience. One winner is crowned — then the night is gone.

The story so far

A decade of slams.

From back-room bars in Fortitude Valley to barrel halls, botanic gardens and warehouse stages — Scribble Slam has run across Brisbane for ten-plus years, hundreds of battles deep.

2013 — 2015

Born in the Valley

It starts in the back rooms of Fortitude Valley — bars and warehouses, two artists and a crowd close enough to touch the paint.

KerbsideRic's BarFortitude Valley

2015 — 2017

The numbered slams

Battle after battle after battle — dozens of numbered editions building a roster of Brisbane's best and a format that just works.

Slam #23 → #44feat. Beat Slam

2022

BSAF takes it citywide

Scribble Slam joins the Brisbane Street Art Festival — five battles across the city's best rooms in a single May.

Elements CollectiveFelons Barrel HallCity Botanic Gardens

2023

Bigger walls, bigger crowds

Another BSAF run — from the festival launch party to Southbank's piazza, national and international artists transforming the space in under two hours.

Superordinary NorthshoreSouthbank PiazzaThe Black MarketFelons

2024

The return

After a hiatus, the slam comes back at Superordinary in Hamilton — headlined by Gus Eagleton against Sofles. Free entry, packed room.

Superordinary · HamiltonGus Eagleton vs Sofles

Now

Between battles

The walls are quiet for the moment. The next theme hasn't dropped yet — follow along and you'll know the second it does.

@scribbleslam
10+
years running
200+
art battles
400+
artists
1
winner a night

Who's slammed

The names on the walls.

Some of the artists who've gone head to head at Scribble Slam — and hundreds more across a decade of battles.

From the floor

Paint, nerve, and a clock.

Ten years of artists going at it live, in front of a crowd. A few frames from the battles.

Two artists painting large canvases side by side as a crowd watches at a Scribble Slam battle
Head to headBSAF 2023
An artist painting a bold black-and-white scribbled face live on a wall
Pens outBSAF 2022
An artist reaching up to paint an expressive red-and-cream face on a tall panel
90 minutesBSAF 2023
An artist with dreadlocks painting a flowing design on a wall at night
Brush vs wallBSAF 2022
Two artists spray-painting colourful graffiti characters beside a hand-lettered Battle Night sign and rows of spray cans
Battle nightBSAF 2023
A masked artist in a respirator spray-painting a geometric piece under dramatic blue light
Under the lightsBSAF 2022
Two finished black-and-white canvases flank an MC on the mic as the crowd looks on
The revealBSAF 2023
An artist mid-motion painting a black octopus on a white panel in a dim bar
Live on the wallBSAF 2022
Two finished Scribble Slam panels in pinks and purples after the battle, paint tins on the floor
The finished worksBSAF 2022
Scribble Slam 2024 poster: two boxing spray-can characters in a ring, Gus Eagleton versus Sofles, Friday 23rd August, Superordinary, Hamilton

The last bell

Gus Eagleton vs Sofles

The 2024 return put two of Brisbane's heaviest hitters in the ring at Superordinary — free entry, a full house, and ninety minutes that proved the format still lands.

It's the most recent slam on record. Whenever the next one is called, this is the energy it'll be chasing.

See more on Instagram

Don't miss the next one

Follow the slam.

Every theme, every matchup and every result lands on Instagram first. That's where the next battle gets called.

@scribbleslam Facebook

Want to host a slam, paint in one, or just know when the next one lands?
Say hi at lincoln@vastyonder.com