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 26″ by 26″, may be up to 4″ 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 call our Des Moines office at (515) 400-8180.
The rules, checklist, and release form for the competition are scheduled to be posted in early February on the House of Representatives’ Congressional Art Competition.
Please email your artwork and the release form to Tracee.Knapp@mail.house.gov to participate in the Congressional Art Competition. Submissions are due April 15 and the winners will be announced on May 1.