Five students from four Fairfax County public schools took top honors in Congressman Gerry Connolly’s sixth annual Congressional Arts Competition. Connolly announced the winners Saturday.
Mimi Shang of James Madison High School in Vienna took first place honors with her artwork titled Bubble Talking. Her artwork will be hung in the U.S. Capitol for a year alongside the winners of congressional arts competitions from districts across the country.
More than 350 high school students, parents, and teachers gathered at the Lorton Workhouse Arts Center Saturday at a reception announcing the winners. Connolly said this year’s competition was the largest ever with 184 students from high schools across Fairfax and Prince William submitting 238 works of art.
Lizzie Wright, a student at J.E.B. Stuart High School in the Falls Church area of the county, took second place for her Self-Portrait.
The third place winner was Madison Phillips of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in the Annandale area for a piece entitled Copenhagen Café.
Doi Kim, of James Madison High School in Vienna took fourth place with the work Snapshots of a City.
And the fifth place winner was Rachel Kim of South County High School in Lorton for her piece entitled, Endangered Animals.
A special Rising Star award, sponsored by the Workhouse Arts Center, was won by Nima Jeizan of George C. Marshall High School. Her work, Quit Bothering, will be displayed at the Lorton Workhouse for the next year.
“The record number of entries in this year’s competition reflects the high level of interest in the fine arts among Northern Virginia students and the dedication of our arts teachers and patrons to encouraging artistic skills in our high schools,” Connolly said. “I congratulate all of the students who participated in the competition. The quality of their work was impressive. I’m also grateful to the Workhouse Arts Center, its staff, and the judges for all of their efforts to make this annual event a success and help showcase the work of our students.”
Judging was conducted by Emily Hawes of the Prince William Art Society, Signe Freidrichs of the Council for the Arts of Herndon, Holly McCullough of the Greater Reston Arts Center, John Mason of the Workhouse Arts Center, and Rachelle Etienne-Robinson of the Arts Council of Fairfax County.
Connolly’s annual Congressional Art Competition is open to all high school students who reside in Virginia’s 11th CD. Public, private, and home-schooled students are invited to participate.