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. 

This is a prestigious competition. The winning artwork will represent the 8th District in Washington, D.C., by being displayed in the U.S. Capitol as part of a year-long exhibit. The winning artist may receive free round-trip airfares for the national winners’ reception in Washington, D.C., and be eligible for a scholarship from prestigious art and design college. Other winners’ pieces will be showcased at my Washington, DC, and district offices for the next year.

This year, Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park and Museum hosted the exhibition of works submitted by students in schools throughout District 8. In total, there were over 200 entries from students in the congressional district!

Congratulations to the following students on their awards at this year’s competition:

Honorable Mention: All Media
Brenda Schirmer

Honorable Mention: All Media
Sarah Young

2nd Place: All Media
Tiffany Truong

Congratulations to all of this year’s OHHS Art and Design students who submitted work for this year’s competition and exhibition. Artwork will be on display from April 19th through 23rd, with an Awards Reception taking place on April 22nd.

Anna Ackman
Molly Audretch
Mayson Buckley
Kendall Crum
Scout Estes
Jada Kidd
Molly Lorenz
Sophia Osborne
Marshall Shorten
Jordan Tinsley
Olivia Widener
Corey Willett
Lydia Wilson
Andrew Wubbolding

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. 

This is a prestigious competition. The winning artwork will represent the 8th District in Washington, D.C., by being displayed in the U.S. Capitol as part of a year-long exhibit. The winning artist may receive free round-trip airfares for the national winners’ reception in Washington, D.C., and be eligible for a scholarship from prestigious art and design college. Other winners’ pieces will be showcased at my Washington, DC, and district offices for the next year.

This year, Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park and Museum will host the exhibition of works submitted by students in schools throughout District 8. Artwork will be on display from April 19th through 23rd, with an Awards Reception taking place on April 22nd.

Congratulations and best of luck to this year’s OHHS Art and Design students who were encouraged by Ms. Schorsch to submit work for this year’s competition! Stay tuned for information regarding competition results!

Anna Ackman
Molly Audretch
Mayson Buckley
Kendall Crum
Scout Estes
Jada Kidd
Molly Lorenz
Sophia Osborne
Brenna Schirmer
Marshall Shorten
Jordan Tinsley
Tiffany Truong
Olivia Widener
Corey Willett
Lydia Wilson
Andrew Wubbolding
Sarah Young

“The Memory Project” is a nonprofit organization that invites art teachers and their students to create portraits for youth around the world who have faced substantial challenges, such as neglect, abuse, loss of parents, and extreme poverty. Over the past seven years, Drawing and Printmaking and NAHS students have created over 420 portraits for children in Madagascar, the Philippines, and Syrian refugees in Jordan, Puerto Rico, the Rohingya in Rakhine, Columbia, Nigeria, Cameroon, and Sierra Leone. This year, students at OHHS will be creating portraits for 20 Syrian children.

The portraits the students created are for Syrian refugee children who have spent their lives living along the border, they will remind each child of their own strength and beauty; it will show them that someone living far away is paying attention to the challenges that they face. The ultimate goal of the project is to create portraits to help the children feel valued and important, to know that many people care about their well-being, and to act as meaningful pieces of personal history in the future. The project also provides an opportunity for students to practice kindness and global awareness.

“The Memory Project” portraits are created by students enrolled in the Drawing and Printmaking course (grades 9-12). Below are some of the highlights of the OHHS Drawing and Printmaking students’ resulting artworks:

The Rain Barrel Art Project, now in its 10th year, was created to promote the use of rain barrels throughout the Ohio River Valley area through a creative and educational medium. The Rain Barrel Art Project desires to educate people on environmental issues like stormwater runoff, watersheds, and water conservation.

Rain barrels continue to grow in popularity across the country. However, one of its biggest drawbacks is its dull appearance. Some people are less likely to use them given their negative aesthetic impact on residential and commercial landscaping, even though they conserve water and save money. The “Save Local Waters” initiative believes that producing beautiful artistic rain barrels that have unique painted details will make them more desirable and naturally increase interest to promote their use.

This year, OHHS artists in Ms. Kopf’s Painting and Public Art and Ms. Schorsch’s National Art Honor Society created 5 Rain Barrels for the event! Completed Rain Barrels will be displayed at the Cincinnati Zoo from March 27th through April 27th with the Online Auction taking place April 18th through 28th and Artist Reception on April 27th.

Congratulations to Bri Brown, Teagan Charles, Evie Neuhaus, Avril Predmore, and Leah Stolla on the selection of their design by the “Save Local Waters” committee for this year’s event!

The Cincinnati Art Museum recently hosted artist Roberto Lugo as an Artist in Residency in support of his current exhibition, “Roberto Lugo: High Def Archives”.

“Roberto Lugo (Puerto Rican-American, b. 1981) is a potter, social activist, spoken word poet, and educator. Lugo’s work as a social activist is represented in his artworks, where he draws together hip-hop, history, politics, and his cultural background into formal ceramics. He draws from his lived experience and deep knowledge of ceramic history to create works that elevate the stories of those historically absent from the decoration of extravagant examples of pottery. Lugo’s multicultural mashups often combine classic forms and patterns with elements of hip-hop. “As a potter,” Lugo explains, “I aim to carry on the ceramic tradition in a manner that honors the culture and community I come from.” Lugo was raised in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia, an area marked by poverty, violence, and drug trafficking. At the age of 25, he enrolled in his first pottery class. Today, he leads the ceramic department at Temple University in Philadelphia, and his art resides in the collections of the most prestigious art institutions in the country, including the Cincinnati Art Museum. When he is not teaching or creating, Lugo returns to neighborhoods like Kensington with a potter’s wheel emblazoned with the words, “This machine kills hate.” Taking his art to the street, he uses clay and his wheel to teach others how to throw pots, break down cultural and social biases, and encourage the possibility that anyone can choose and achieve their dreams” (Cincinnati Art Museum).

During his residency, Lugo produced a significant amount of work and invited young creatives to join him to finish the pieces in his studio at the Cincinnati Art Museum. OHHS Art and Design students Molly Lorenz and Corey Willet took advantage of this amazing opportunity to work alongside the artist in this undertaking and spent the day learning and experiencing techniques in the studio alongside the artist.

To learn more about Lugo and the exhibition, visit:  https://www.cincinnatiartmuseum.org/art/exhibitions/roberto-lugo-hi-def-archives/