CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Nine young artists have been selected as winners in the annual Congressional Art Competition, which is on display in the Balcony Gallery of the Culture Center, State Capitol Complex, in Charleston until April 30. The exhibition is sponsored by the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History (WVDACH), in partnership with the West Virginia Congressional Delegation.
On Friday, March 4, WVDACH Museum Director Charles Morris and Exhibits Coordinator Laiken Blankenship welcomed guests and introduced Susie Azevedo, representing Congressman Alex Mooney, and Teri Booth, representing Congresswoman Carol Miller.
First-place awards were presented to Lauren Seti,Bridgeport High School, Harrison County, District 1; Jaelyn Perry,Nitro High School, Kanawha County, District 2; and Kendra Fischer,Spring Valley High School, Cabell County, District 3. The first-place winners received a $100 gift certificate from Dick Blick Art Materials, and their work will represent West Virginia in a yearlong Congressional Art Competition exhibition at the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.
An additional three second-place winners and three third-place winners received awards – Caleb Roselius,Robert C. Byrd High School, Harrison County, District 1, 2nd place; Sadi Painter, George Washington High School, Kanawha County, District 2, 2nd place; Gracie Hines,Webster County High School, Webster County, District 3, 2nd place; Connor Buffington,Bridgeport High School, Harrison County, District 1, 3rd place; Malakai Smith,Nitro High School, Kanawha County, District 2, 3rd place; and Elsa Meade, Huntington High School, Cabell County, District 3, 3rd place. Second-place and third-place winners received a $50 gift certificate from Dick Blick Art Materials.
The Congressional Art Exhibition consists of 140 pieces by 110 students, grades 7-12, from 12 West Virginia counties.
Each spring, the Congressional Institute sponsors a nationwide high school visual-art competition to recognize and encourage artistic talent in the nation and in each congressional district. Since the competition began in 1982, more than 650,000 high school students have participated. The competition is sponsored by members of the United States Congress.
A complete list of students whose work is included in the exhibition is below.
For more information, contact Laiken Blankenship, exhibits coordinator for the department, at (304) 558-0220 or laiken.j.blankenship@wv.gov.
MEDIA NOTE: All photographs from the event are available at https://zenfolio.page.link/B4Vas. Any photo identification requests can be made to Andrea.E.Nelson@wv.gov.
All Photo Credits: Stephen Brightwell, West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History
2022 Congressional Youth Art Competition Exhibit (listed by district and county)
DISTRICT 1
HARRISON COUNTY
Bridgeport High School
Art Teacher: Courtney Rankin
Morgan Grose (Grade 8)
An Anatomical Figure Suspended in Time – Pencil
Kailey Wilfong (Grade 12)
Expectations – Gouache
Tighe Coleman (Grade 11)
Azaro – Charcoal
Creature Study: Beaked Sand Walker –Mixed Media
Lauren Seti (Grade 11)
*Wild, Wonderful, and Woodburn – Pen (1st place)
Connor Buffington (Grade 12)
*Peering Stone – Charcoal (3rd place)
Morgan Sprouse (Grade 11)
How to be a Good Person – Gouache
Robert C. Byrd High School
Art Teacher: Katy Crim
Izzy Simmons (Grade 12)
Private Radio – Screen Print
Steven Morris (Grade 12)
Friend – Acrylic
Caylee Nesbit (Grade 10)
Anomalies – Acrylic
Jadeah Lownsberry (Grade 11)
See Into My Spirit – Collage
Caleb Roselius (Grade 9)
*Serio Antonio – Collage (2nd place)
Julian Fazzini (Grade 11)
Self-Made – Collage
Ava Waniak (Grade 9)
Macabre M.E.D. – Mixed Media
Jane Hayes (Grade 12)
Crazy Horse – Mixed Media
Keilana Kriner (Grade 9)
London Town – Watercolor
Taylor Arnett (Grade 10)
Into the Arboretum – Oil Pastel
Bryce Johnson (Grade 12)
Urban Entity – Acrylic
MONONGALIA COUNTY
Clay-Battelle Middle/High School
Art Teacher: Jennifer Norberg-Bowers
Drew Snyder (Grade 9)
Leaf Pile – Photography
Lilliana Wolfe (Grade 9)
Sunset – Photography
Pony Yost (Grade 12)
Water’s Reflection – Photography
Chloe Sharpless (Grade 9)
Tropical Greenery Mountains – Acrylic
Anna Goroslieta (Grade 11)
Inky Ixora – Photography
Sunset Divine – Photography
Summer Reminiscence – Photography
Makayla Satterfield (Grade 10)
My Faith – Photography
Madison Willard (Grade 10)
Dewy Caterpillar – Photography
Ladybug Dreams – Photography
Morgantown High School
Art Teacher: Jooyun “Joanne” Pyune
Rania Zuri (Grade 11)
Golden Ratio of Beauty: The Danger of False Perfection in Social Media – Mixed Media
Fractured: The Destruction of Self-Esteem Due to Social Media – Mixed Media
WOOD COUNTY
Williamstown High School
Art Teacher: Tim Spindler
Alayna Garst (Grade 10)
A New Kind of Happy…Birthday – Mixed Media
The Power of Coal is Gone with the Wind – Mixed Media
DISTRICT 2
BERKELEY COUNTY
Musselman High School
Art Teacher: Melissa Burton
Kyle Bass (Grade 10)
The Railroad of Harper’s Ferry -Photography
The Mountain’s View of Harper’s Ferry – Photography
Abby Brill (Grade 10)
Yellow Lamborghini – Photography
Dahi Wiltshire (Grade 12)
Secrets of the Woods- Mixed Media
Amanda Hugas (Grade 11)
Grasp to Change – Digital Art
Jayme Stuckey (Grade 11)
Worth a Thousand Words -Photography
Mikaela Grace Tyson (Grade 10)
Girl in Pink and Purple – Photography
Alexia McKenzie Parker (Grade 10)
Submerged in Silence – Photography
KANAWHA COUNTY
Capital High School
Art Teacher: Christina Frye
Cindy Zhu (Grade 11)
Valley Skies – Watercolor
End of the Day, and I’m Tired – Oil Paint
The Vibrancy of Human Eyes – Oil Paint
Jessi Lin (Grade 11)
A Strange City – Acrylic
Will Sammons (Grade 11)
Simplicity – Pastel
Bonnie Groce (Grade 11)
Focus – Watercolor
Thomas Ward (Grade 11)
Instability – Technical pens
George Washington High School
Art Teacher: Christy Pennington
Aillea Elkins (Grade 12)
Redemption – Mixed Media
A Life in Color – Mixed Media
Juli Muldoon (Grade 12)
Three Faces of Me – Mixed Media
Old Woman – Oil Paint
Heidi Winter Mundy (Grade 11)
Close Up – Mixed Media and
Lost Time – Oil Pastel
Jessica Tenney (Grade 12)
Allie’s Lemurs – Watercolor
Sadi Painter (Grade 10)
*Glass Remembrances – Acrylic (2nd place)
Rohen Jones (Grade 11)
Chicken – Acrylic
Chase Henderson (Grade11)
Field of Thorns- Mixed Media
Eat ‘Til Your Heart’s Content – Mixed Media
Iva Reed (Grade 11)
Beyond – Watercolor
Everlasting – Acrylic
Buaur Rashrash (Grade 11)
Suhila Sawesi – Oil Pastel
Amazing Woman – Paper Collage
Katherine Pence (Grade10)
Felix Says Purr – Scratchboard
Island Time – Watercolor
Emma Carpenter (Grade 12)
Flight of Luck – Mixed Media
Monrene Ross (Grade 12)
Masks of Africa – Pen and Ink
Hurtfulness of my Happiness – Mixed Media
Emma Walker (Grade 12)
Daughters of the Poppy – Acrylic
The Painful Choice of Comedic Cover-ups – Watercolor Resist
Samir Jones (Grade 10)
Dream State – Oil Pastel
Fish – Watercolor
Ariana Viso (Grade 11)
Looking Back – Oil Paint
Surprise – Mixed Media
Julianne Ho (Grade 11)
Snow White With the Red Hair –Tempera Paint
Under the Surface– Mixed Media
Art Teacher: Puvanam Path
Archana Krishnathas (Grade 9)
Eye – Charcoal
Ganesha – Pencil
Herbert Hoover High School
Art Teacher: Niesha Shank
Haylee Wilson (Grade12)
Troubled Trio – Black Gel Pen
Home School
Art Teacher: Michael McDonald
Madeline McDonald (Grade 7)
Day at the Beach – Digital Drawing
Nitro High School
Art Teacher: Danielle Hunt
Kyrstin Showalter (Grade 12)
Peace – Acrylic
Audrey Moles (Grade 11)
Emotions– Mixed Media
Gracie Skeens (Grade 11)
Owl Portrait – Acrylic
Dalaney Hill (Grade 12)
Watercolor Architecture Study – Watercolor
Bird Portrait – Acrylic
Delaney Corlis (Grade 12)
Lovesong – Mixed Media
Arizona – Colored Pencil
Alexis Lightner (Grade 11)
Beaded Mosaic – Beads
Watercolor Angelfish – Watercolor
Lauren Spencer (Grade 10)
Cardboard Sculpture – Mixed Media
Judith – Acrylic
Karmen Hogan (Grade 11)
Floral Linocut – Block Print
Melody Zhang (Grade 10)
Mixed Media Collage – Mixed Media
Parody – Mixed Media
Abigail Carre (Grade 10)
Flatwoods Monster – Charcoal
Allison Unger (Grade 12)
Mixed Media Collage – Mixed Media
Mason Lockman (Grade 11)
Zodiac Orchid – Colored Pencil
Bird Portrait – Colored Pencil
Addisyn Miller (Grade 10)
Still-Life– Colored Pencil
Luz Elena Martinez (Grade 12)
Mixed Media Paper Collage – Mixed Media
Jaelyn Perry (Grade 12)
*Watercolor Landscape – Watercolor (1st place)
Cow in Flowers – Acrylic
Malakai Smith (Grade 11)
*Pisces – Copic Marker and Ink (3rd place)
Alyson Pennington (Grade 12)
Lunar Solitude – Acrylic
PUTNAM COUNTY
Poca High School
Art Teacher: Cathy Thomas
McKenzie Bowman (Grade 12)
Barn – Acrylic
Danielle Carter (Grade 10)
Saturday Morning – Acrylic
DISTRICT 3
CABELL COUNTY
Huntington High School
Art Teacher(s): Marissa Main, Anthony Loveday and Diana Frazier
Elsa Meade (Grade 11)
*Cherry Blossoms – Acrylic (3rd place)
Stevie Culbreth (Grade 10)
Turquoise Beta – Acrylic
Mason Allen (Grade 9)
The Hen – Acrylic
Elsa Meade (Grade 11)
Just the Two of Us – Drawing
Aliyah Burnside (Grade 9)
Marcel – Drawing
Zachary Maynard (Grade 12)
Wonderland Flowers – Photography
Natasha Carpenter (Grade 10)
Everyone’s Hiding Something – Photography
Alexzya Willis (Grade 12)
Painterly Branches– Photography
Savannah Graham (Grade 10)
Yellow Jacket – Photography
Tessier Jolie (Grade 12)
Buzzing Around – Photography
LINCOLN COUNTY
Lincoln County High School
Art Teacher: Ashleigh Garrett
Kandi Meadows (Grade 9)
Bark – Acrylic
Kristen Egnor (Grade 11)
Lampshade Roots – Acrylic
Kandyce Porter (Grade 9)
My Mind – Chalk
MASON COUNTY
Wahama Jr./Sr. High School
Art Teacher: Susan Parrish
Sydney Burris (Grade 11)
Still Bliss – Mixed Media
Peyton Ingels (Grade 12)
Gus-Gus – Oil Paint
Roan – Digital Art
Joshua Roque (Grade 12)
He Who Ponders – Oil Paint
NICHOLAS COUNTY
Nicholas County High School
Art Teacher: Pam Cox
Olivia Short (Grade 12)
Observations – Mixed Media
Lacie Jones (Grade 12)
Turkey in the Wild – Acrylic
WAYNE COUNTY
Spring Valley High School
Art Teacher: Sara Tess Hager
Brianna Bowen (Grade 12)
Sweet Serene Glow – Acrylic
Krysten Jarrell (Grade 11)
Natural Shine – Acrylic
Kendra Fischer (Grade 12)
*Afternoon Snooze – Watercolor (1st place)
WEBSTER COUNTY
Webster County High School
Art Teacher: Pam Hall
Brooklyn Giles (Grade 11)
Garden Fresh – Acrylic
Gracyn Durham (Grade 7)
Memories – Pencil
Eleanor Narraway (Grade 8)
Upside-down World – Acrylic
My Universe – Mixed Media
Natalie Snyder (Grade 12)
The Joker – Acrylic
Abbigail Carpenter (Grade 12)
Aerial Tragedy – Acrylic
Chloe Hollmer (Grade 9)
TNBC – Colored Pencil
Kayleigh Garcia (Grade11)
The Mansion atop the Hill- Acrylic
Addison Hamrick (Grade 8)
Foggy Memories – Acrylic
Sarah Farlow (Grade 9)
Dreamy Sky – Acrylic
Gracie Hines (Grade 12)
*Clarity – Charcoal (2nd place)
Joslynn Casteel (Grade 8)
Tennessee Lights – Photography
Rebecca Mullens (Grade 12)
A Walk in a Day of Color – Chalk Pastels