Like Them Or Not,

facemasks are now a part of our daily lives,

at least for the next few months, and I suspect much longer, so it is hardly surprising that competitions like this one to design a face mask are springing up, this one has a theme, all you have to do to win is to create an original design for a face mask that represents the U.S.-Japan connection, “Mask Up 2020” is an original face mask design contest sponsored by The Japan Foundation that is open to amateur creators of all ages, from children to adults. Along with an advisory committee – which includes judges from UNIQLO, Parsons School of Design, and Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum – contest participants will also decide the winning designs, the winning designs will win prizes (gift cards for Kinokuniya Books and Blick Art Materials) and be printed on masks and distributed to medical institutions and nonprofit Japan-related organizations such as Japan-America Societies, Japanese Gardens, etc.; winners will receive 25 of their designed face masks.

Deadline: January 22, 2021 by 6:00pm (EST)

Voting and Judging: February 8-17, 2021 (EST)

Winners Announced: March 1, 2021, live on Japan Foundation’s YouTube channel, so pencils, crayons and paint out, and spend a few hours to submit your design.