Belgian creative-learning platform Artwod raises €1.1 million to build creators' marketplace

Antwerp-based Artwod, a guided learning and community platform for visual artists, has raised a €1.1 million seed round with participation from Airbridge Equity Partners and ForsVC.

Founder and CEO Antonio Stappaerts said that while artificial intelligence can now perform remarkable feats, creativity isn't only about the final output — the process of creating is deeply personal and gives people a sense of purpose and identity.

Artwod was founded in 2020 by Stappaerts, a former Creative Director and professional Concept Artist who has worked with companies including Ubisoft and Sony Entertainment. The platform reflects his own experience of how artists genuinely improve: through practice, feedback, repetition and clear guidance.

The platform blends a Duolingo-style approach — short, playful exercises that build on one another — with a Chess.com-style active community, where artists share work, compare progress and give each other feedback. Artwod recently partnered with drawing-tablet maker Wacom to give digital artists faster access to personalised feedback and guided practice.

The new funding will go toward launching a creator marketplace, where experienced feedback-givers can offer paid critiques and guidance to other artists, creating a new income stream within the platform's community.

Over the past 18 months, Artwod has grown to serve more than 100,000 artists worldwide. Since introducing and expanding its community features, daily platform traffic has reportedly grown by more than 500%, with daily engaged usage up over 400%.

The round fits within a broader wave of 2026 investment into European platforms serving creators and online communities, following similar funding announcements from companies including First Concepts, Modelia, Voxelo, Dragonfly AI and MOVEMENTS.