Art Competition

Each spring, a nationwide 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 Artistic Discovery Contest is open to all high school students in Iowa’s Third 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. The winning artwork is also featured on the House of Representatives' Congressional Art Competition  page. 

The following is a summary of the Congressional Art Competition rules: 

Artwork entered in the contest may be up to 28 inches by 28 inches, may be up to 4 inches in depth, and may not weigh more than 15 pounds. If your artwork is selected as the winning piece, it must arrive framed and must still measure no larger than the above maximum dimensions. Accepted mediums for the two-dimensional artwork are as follows: 

• Paintings - including oil, acrylics, and watercolor 

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

• Collages - must be two dimensional 

• Prints - including lithographs, silkscreen, and block prints 

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

• Computer-generated art 

• Photography 

All entries must be original in concept, design, and execution and may not violate any 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. Work entered must be in the original medium (that is, not a scanned reproduction of a painting or drawing). 

If you would like more information on the annual Congressional District Art Competition, please email anthony.chavez@mail.house.gov or call our Des Moines office at (515) 400-8180. 

Please note: the deadline to submit your artwork is on April 26 at 5PM.  

The rules, checklist, and release form for the competition are posted on the House of Representatives' Congressional Art Competition