Twenty-five students from the Richmond region received National Awards for their artwork submitted to The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards program, recognizing outstanding creative teenagers and offering scholarship opportunities for graduating high school seniors. Of these National Awards, 15 received Gold Medals and 12 received Silver Medals. Two Gold Medal recipients were Best in Grade, awarded to only four students per grade nationwide, and one received the Ovation Film and Animation Award, given to only five students nationwide. These students will be celebrated at an awards ceremony at Carnegie Hall in New York on May 31.
This year marks the 90th anniversary of the awards, and this year’s program broke participant records. More than 230,000 submissions were received in 28 categories, including dramatic script, journalism, humor, novel-writing, science-fiction, as well as painting, sculpture, photography, fashion design, film and animation, and video game design, among others. More than 1,600 of the most talented and ambitious students in grades 7-12, representing 47 U.S. states, as well as students in Washington, D.C., and American schools abroad, were chosen to receive national medals. The works of art and writing were evaluated on originality, technical skill, and the emergence of a personal vision or voice. This year’s list of jurors included Edwidge Danticat, Myla Goldberg, Kurt Andersen, Althea Harper, Red Grooms, and Andres Serrano. Works were judged on originality, technical skill, and the emergence of personal vision or voice. This year, more than 3,000 submissions were entered by students in grades 7-12 regionally.
“This 90th year of the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards demonstrates just how vital the program is to America’s creative young people,” said Virginia McEnerney, executive director of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers. “We received more entries than ever before, and the depth of talent from all across the country is astounding. In some cases, an Award and its attendant scholarships can make the difference between whether or not a young writer or artist attends college. We are privileged to provide recognition and assistance to these deserving young people, and to celebrate the importance of arts education in American cultural life.”
This year’s National Celebration begins in New York City on May 31 when the LED super signs at 1515 Broadway in Times Square will feature the awards throughout the day. National winners will be honored onstage during a ceremony at Carnegie Hall that will be webcast live. Select award-winning art and writing will be exhibited at Parsons The New School for Design and the Pratt Manhattan Gallery through June 15, 2013. The exhibition and accompanying public programs are co-sponsored by the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center at Parsons.
Richmond Art Region Medalists:
- Allison Peyton, 17, Gold Medal, Clay Tapestry, Ceramics and Glass, Trinity Episcopal School, Teacher: Lee Hazelgrove
- Summer Balcom, 17, Silver Medal, Oh Comely, Mixed Media, Manchester High School, Teacher: Margaret Jackson
- Miles Barnett, 16, Gold Medal, Forest, Drawing, Appomattox Regional Governor’s School, Teacher: David Bartlett
- Miles Barnett, 16, Gold Medal, Bicycle, Gold Medal, Sculpture, Appomattox Regional Governor’s School, Teacher: Susann Whittier
- Denzel Boyd, 17, Gold Medal, Inception, Design, Deep Run High School, Teacher: Michael Guyer
- Alexa Buchin, 18, Siler Medal, Drowning, Photography, Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School for Government and International Studies, Teacher: Georgianne Stinnett
- Mackenzie Busby, 17, Silver Medal, Art Portfolio, Appomattox Regional Governor’s School, Teacher: Susann Whittier
- Tara Caltenback, 16, Gold Medal, KCAJ, Photography, Governor’s School for the Arts, Teacher: Victor Frailing
- Kinsey Childress, 15, Gold Medal, Here’s Looking At You, Babe!, Ceramics and Glass, Cosby High School, Teacher: Helena Agnew
- Mary Clanton, 18, Gold Medal, Study Of Texture And Chair, Mixed Media, Deep Run High School, Teacher: Michael Guyer
- Lucy Dacus, 17, Silver Medal, Undone, Sculpture, Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School for Government and International Studies, Teacher: Jeff Hall
- Ryan Duncan, 17, American Visions Medal, Silver Medal, A Classy Gentleman, Painting, Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School for Government and International Studies, Teacher: Jeff Hall
- Madeleine Fratarcangelo, 13, Gold Medal, Best in Grade, Robo-birds, Drawing, St. Catherine’s School, Teacher: Thomas Van Auken
- Madeleine Fratarcangelo, 13, Silver Medal, School Bound, Painting, St. Catherine’s School, Teacher: Thomas Van Auken
- Courtney Gerboc, 17, Silver Medal, Michael Thomas And Doxranj, Drawing, Cosby High School, Teacher: Jane Rowley
- Annabelle Hayford, 14, Gold Medal, Deer Keeper, Digital Art, Princess Anne High School, Teacher: Liana Graham
- Jason Hunter, 18, Gold Medal, Coil, Photography, Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School for Government and International Studies, Teacher: Georgianne Stinnett
- Nathan Illmensee, 17, Silver Medal, Plume, Photography, Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School for Government and International Studies, Teacher: Georgianne Stinnett
- Abby Jenkins, 17, Gold Medal, African Celebration, Photography, Trinity Episcopal School, Teacher: Lee Hazelgrove
- Jinny Kang, 16, Gold Medal, Abandoned Rage, Drawing, Deep Run High School, Teacher: Michael Guyer
- Brad Lankford, 17, Silver Medal, Teen Angel #2, Photography, Appomattox Regional Governor’s School, Teacher: Patricia Lyons
- Ian Levesque, 16, Gold Medal, Ovation Award, Joe Bob Begins, Film and Animation, Nansemond River High School, Teacher: Liana Graham
- Kaylynn Mayo, 17, Silver Medal, Self Portrait, Drawing, Freedom High School, Teacher: Augusta Dadiego
- Alexandra McEachin, 18, Silver Medal, Agyness, Drawing, St. Catherine’s High School, Teacher: Diego Sanchez
- Katherine Olson, 18, Silver Medal, Art Portfolio, Potomac Falls High School, Teacher: Elizabeth Chodrow
- Michael Rider, 18, Gold Medal, Untitled; Vincent, Drawing, Henrico High School, Teacher: Mary Scurlock
- Ian Watt, 17, Gold Medal, You Are So Far, Digital Art, Laurel Springs School, Teacher: Eric Watt
Dedicated to the development of Virginia’s young artists, VMFA is the regional affiliate for The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers and facilitates the Scholastic Art Awards for 60 counties and cities in the state of Virginia, including: Albemarle, Caroline, Charles City, Charlottesville, Chesapeake, Chesterfield, Colonial Heights, Culpeper, Dinwiddie, Essex, Fauquier, Fluvanna, Franklin City, Isle of Wight, Fredericksburg, Gloucester, Goochland, Greene, Hampton, Hanover, Henrico, Hopewell, King and Queen, King George, King William, Lancaster, Loudoun, Louisa, Madison, Manassas City, Manassas Park, Mathews, Middlesex, Nelson, New Kent, Newport News, Norfolk, Northumberland, Orange, Petersburg, Poquoson, Portsmouth, Powhatan, Prince George, Prince William, Rappahannock, Richmond City, Richmond County, Southampton, Spotsylvania, Stafford, Suffolk City, Suffolk County, Surry, Sussex, Virginia Beach, West Point, Westmoreland, Williamsburg-James City, and York.
The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts recognized all Gold Key and Silver Key Award recipients at an awards ceremony in February. Gold Key and Silver Key Award recipients were also recognized in the ceremony’s program, which included artist statements by Gold Key Art Portfolio winners and images of works by American Visions Nominees.
All works recognized with Gold Key, Silver Key, and Honorable Mention are showcased online here. Works were exhibited at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in the MWV Art Education Center.
Founded in 1923, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards is the longest-running, most prestigious program of its kind, having fostered the creativity and talent of millions of students through recognition, exhibitions and publications. Throughout the past five years, students have submitted nearly 700,000 pieces of work, and more than $25 million has been made available in scholarships and awards to top winning participants.
The national program is generously supported by Scholastic Inc., the Maurice R. Robinson Fund, The New York Times, the Institute for Museum and Library Services, the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, Command Web Offset Co., the AMD Foundation, Blick Art Materials, the National Endowment for the Arts, 3D Systems, New York Life, Bloomberg L.P., Ovation, Amazon.com, the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Trust, the Bernstein Family Foundation, Duck Tape®, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, and contributions from numerous other individual, foundation, and corporate funders.
About the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
VMFA’s permanent collection encompasses more than 33,000 works of art spanning 5,000 years of world history. Its collections of Art Nouveau and Art Deco, English silver, Fabergé, and the art of South Asia are among the finest in the nation. With acclaimed holdings in American, British Sporting, Impressionist and Post-Impressionist, and Modern and Contemporary art – and additional strengths in African, Ancient, East Asian, and European – VMFA ranks as one of the top comprehensive art museums in the United States. Programs include educational activities and studio classes for all ages, plus lively after-hours events. VMFA’s Statewide Partnership program includes traveling exhibitions, artist and teacher workshops, and lectures across the Commonwealth. VMFA is open 365 days a year and general admission is always free. For additional information, telephone 804-340-1400 or visit www.vmfa.museum.