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Congressional Art Competition

VOTE FOR THE WINNER OF THIS YEAR'S CONGRESSIONAL ART COMPETITION!

ABOUT THE CONGRESSIONAL ART COMPETITION

Each spring, a nation-wide high school arts competition is sponsored by the Members of the U.S. House of Representatives. The Artistic Discovery Contest is an opportunity to recognize and encourage the artistic talent in the nation, as well as in our Congressional District.

The Congressional Art Competition is open to all high school students who reside or attend school in the 6th Congressional District. The winning artwork of our district's competition will be displayed for one year in the U.S. Capitol. The exhibit in Washington will include the winning artwork from all participating districts from around the country. Winners are also featured on House.gov's Congressional Art Competition page.

GUIDELINES FOR ALL 2024 ART COMPETITION SUBMISSIONS

Artwork must be two-dimensional. Each framed artwork can be no larger than 26 inches high, 26 inches wide, and 4 inches deep. If your artwork is selected as the winning piece, it must arrive in Washington, DC, framed. Even when framed, it must still measure no larger than the above maximum dimensions. No framed piece should weigh more than 15 pounds.

Artwork must be the creation a single student. Students may not collaborate on an entry. 

Accepted mediums for the two-dimensional artwork are as follows:

  • Paintings: oil, acrylics, watercolor, etc.

  • Drawings: colored pencil, pencil, ink, marker, pastels, charcoal (It is recommended that charcoal and pastel drawings be fixed.)

  • Collages: must be two dimensional

  • Prints: lithographs, silkscreen, block prints

  • Mixed Media: use of more than two mediums such as pencil, ink, watercolor, etc.

  • Computer-generated art

  • Photographs

Each entry must be original in concept, design, and execution and may not violate U.S. copyright laws. Any entry that has been copied from an existing photo or image (including a painting, graphic, or advertisement) that was created by someone other than the student is a violation of the competition rules and will not be accepted. For more information on copyright laws, please visit the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards website.

Read the full 2024 Congressional Art Competition Rules and Regulations for Students and Teachers. 

TIMELINE

  • Student Submission Deadline: April 26th (DEADLINE EXTENDED) 

  • Public Voting on Top 10 Submissions: April 29th-May 3rd  

  • Winner Announced: May 7th

HOW TO SUBMIT

Students must fill out this form to submit artwork AND the student release form by no later than April 26th in order to be eligible to participate. The completed student release form must be included with their information on the google form.

Please reach out to kelly.jacobsen@mail.house.gov with any additional questions.  


2023 WINNER

Nicole Wang (Mira Loma High School) - War Between Two Great Powers (digital art)

This piece depicts the battle between America and Great Britain, fighting for freedom and separation of colonies. On the left, Great Britain is represented through the lion and the uniform. On the right, the United States of America is represented through the eagle and respective uniform. In the background, the text says "no taxation without representation" to represent the feud between the U.S. and Britain. The teapot pours tea out of split the two sides to represent the Boston tea part.


ALL 2023 FINALISTS

After receiving an incredibly talented pool of submissions, we have narrowed down to FIVE (5) finalists turned to the community for help selecting a winner! Please see below for all of last year's finalists:

Her Natural Complexion (charcoal on paper)

This piece reflects how femininity binds into nature and how natural womanly features can blend into the wilderness from the bottom of her chin, to her defined jawline down to her passion twists flowing into the river, just takes you into a heartfelt connection about how a random forest can resemble human nature. The woman's physique in general took me a little longer to process than just drawing a man walking down the street, her melanin her nose, her soft baby hairs, they all connect into one portrait.


The World Behind Me (charcoal)

A self portrait of the artist from a high down-angle in front of a fish eyed city scape background, completed in black charcoal on a white background.


Painful but Beautiful (sharpie and pen)

It is an image of Marilyn Monroe, created by using the titles of some of her films. The artist highlighted the words using sharpies and colored pens, mostly pink colors with black, grey, and yellow.


War Between Two Great Powers (digital art)

This piece depicts the battle between America and Great Britain, fighting for freedom and separation of colonies. On the left, Great Britain is represented through the lion and the uniform. On the right, the United States of America is represented through the eagle and respective uniform. In the background, the text says "no taxation without representation" to represent the feud between the U.S. and Britain. The teapot pours tea out of split the two sides to represent the Boston tea part.


Miles and Luna (charcoal on paper)

Done with blended charcoal on paper, the drawing shows two cats, Miles and Luna, peeking out from under a textured blanket. The light values of the blanket contrast with the darker, shadowed values of the two hiding cats.