Norton to Announce Congressional Art Competition Winners and Prizes at Ceremony, Tomorrow
WASHINGTON, DC – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) will announce the District of Columbia winners of the annual Congressional Art Competition during an awards ceremony for students, parents and teachers tomorrow, Tuesday, June 3, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Ronald Regan Washington National Airport, in the historic lobby of terminal A.
"Each year's Congressional Art Competition leaves us more and more impressed with our city's young, gifted artists," said Norton. "I am especially grateful to the volunteer members of our Congressional Art Competition committee and our panel of distinguished artists, who have stepped forward with a valuable public service and continue to play an integral role promoting youth arts in the city. There is no doubt that we have seen the results of their work."
The ceremony will feature approximately 180 pieces of original art, submitted by 115 District students in grades eight through 12, representing 14 public, charter, private and religious schools. A panel of artists reviewed the entries from the District, and chose the winners based on technique, creativity, aesthetics, originality, artistic merit, and visual impact. Bagus Himawan, the Head of Photography Concentration at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC), was the lead juror on the five-member panel. Other members were H. Elaine Jackson, an independent curator, writer, and editor, whose Woman's Work/Woman's Mind exhibition was featured at the Bronx Museum of Art; Cynthia de Lorenzi, an artist whose recognition includes being named one of Washington Business Journal's top 25 "Women Who Mean Business" in 2006; Sarah Diallo, a museum educator and coordinator of teen programs who works at the National Gallery of Art and taught at the Newark Museum, where she coordinated the Explore, Africa! Program; and Julio C. Mariño, owner of JM-ARTE Fine Arts in D.C.
The Dave Tauler Music Group will perform during the event. Students who submitted artwork for the contest are all invited to take part in tomorrow's ceremony, where the winners will be announced. Students who entered the competition and attend the event will receive art supplies, entertainment and cultural tickets, Nationals baseball tickets, Spy Museum tickets, International Crime and Punishment Museum tickets, D.C. collectables, Smithsonian Gallery information, and gift bags containing thumb drives, note pads, bookmarks, and water bottles.
Three scholarships will be awarded. The first place winner will receive a partial scholarship to the Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD) and a roundtrip ticket provided by Amtrak to Savannah, GA to visit SCAD, and his or her artwork will hang in the United States Capitol building for one year. The second place winner will receive a scholarship to the Corcoran College of Art & Design Pre-College Program designed to prepare students for college admission and undergraduate success in the fields of photography, fine art and design, and his or her artwork will be on display in the Congresswoman's district offices. The third place winner will receive a scholarship to the UDC College of Arts and Science summer pre-college program, an exhibit in the UDC Gallery as a part of the annual end of year Student Art Show, and an exhibit opportunity of a one-man show in the UDC Gallery, and his or her artwork will also be on display in the Congresswoman's district offices.
A volunteer committee conducts the competition, plans the ceremony, raises funds for the Congressional Art Competition scholarships, and visits the schools to encourage students to participate. The committee is led by co-chairs Donnell Lewis, president of Creative One Source, and Mohammed Neyebpour, Ph.D. candidate at George Washington University. Members of the volunteer committee also include Debra Ambush, Professor, Corcoran College of Art & Design; Mildred Baldwin, Photographer, Smithsonian American Art Museum; Yaida Ford, Attorney, The Ford Law Firm; Giovanni Lizama, Independent Representative of Primerica and Registered Representative of PFS Investments, Inc.; Patricia O. Mitchell, Systems Analyst, Amtrak; Timothy M. Smith, Program Coordinator, Smithsonian Institution; Kate E. Wolfson, Esq., Director, Public Safety Compact Baltimore. The committee also includes student coordinators – Patrick Bailey, 2014 graduate of Gonzaga High and one of Norton's Service Academy appointees to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point; Xena Redd, Friendship Collegiate Academy Public Charter School; Kenture Avery, Washington Mathematics Science Technology Public Charter School; and Asiyah Williams, Duke Ellington School of the Arts.
Published: June 2, 2014