By Amber Georgenson, Current Staff
Imagine if the picture you took of the sunrise this morning won the grand prize at an amateur photo contest. With no fee to enter, what is stopping you?
The Washington County Festival of Arts is being held at the University of Milwaukee-Washington County campus on April 1 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Part of this event is the amateur photo contest where all Washington County residents, especially students, are invited to participate. Up to two photos can be submitted per entrant and the deadline for photo submission is Saturday. There is no fee to enter and the top four entries, judged by a panel of judges, will receive ribbons and cash rewards.
Another part of this event is the student-only art show. Each school that participates in the Festival of Arts can submit up to 15 pieces in the categories of 3D, drawing, painting, photography, collage and prints.
“It can be challenging because you have to really narrow it down to the pieces you would like to show and that’s hard for Mrs. Wolff and I,” said Deborah Prahl, an art teacher at West Bend West High School. “We’d love to showcase as many as possible.”
The work will come from five counties in the region.
“As part of the annual Festival of Arts, the second-floor hallways will be decorated with over 400 pieces of artwork created by the most promising art students from 25 middle and high schools,” festival organizers said in a news release.
The art show and photography contest will be judged during the week of March 20 and the winners will be announced the week of March 27. The awards presentations will take place at 12:30 p.m. April 1 in the school’s fieldhouse.
“The very first year we had the festival, one of our AP students won the grand prize (for the art show),” Prahl said. “So we started out strong there and since then our students have historically placed well in the competition.”
More information about the amateur photo contest such as requirements and submission details can be found on the Washington County Campus Foundation website. For further information, contact Joshua P. Lesniak, Lesniakj@uwm.edu, 414-791-0510.
(Top image: Artwork by West Bend East senior Favee Xiong. Photo courtesy of Deborah Prahl.)
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