 Good morning everybody Thank you all so much for being here. My name is David share I am the director of the state portion of the Congresswoman's congressional office, and we are so glad To be able to host this event for you all and put this on An event like this takes a lot of helping hands. I've got a few Thank yous. I want to get through before I turn it over to the Congresswoman First and foremost on behalf of the staff of the Congresswoman. I really want to thank all of you The the students and the teachers and parents and caregivers Students talent is incredible. It was a joy for us to see all that you've done Thank you also of course to the teachers and caregivers and parents who have taught and nurtured all these folks It's really a remarkable Remarkable display so the staff we put on a lot of events and this is truly one of the joys of our time a Few other folks I want to thank Vermont College of Fine Arts for welcoming us back into this space They've hosted this event a number of times. We're really grateful to them For doing it again this year the Vermont Arts Council was incredibly important in particular Troy Hickman for your support and Providing historical knowledge about this event and to the Arts Council in general for your financial contributions to putting this event on And to supporting our esteemed judges as well as lots of other parts of putting on an event like this Want to thank Ellen McCullough Lovell for her generous Financial support and longtime support of the arts and public service Also, thank you to Lisa Bressler from the Vermont Agency of Education for helping us spread the word about this event around the state to teachers Of course, we want to thank our amazing judges Stefania Eurek Harlan Mack and Cynthia Cagle all of whom have put in a lot of time and deep thought and careful review of the artwork Came up here earlier this week and been doing a lot of work on this So thank you to you all and we'll have some further introductions of them in a few minutes We also want to thank the team at Senator Welch's office when the senator was a representative They put this event on before us and they did a huge amount in terms of teaching us all that We needed to do and giving us a lot of materials to do it One other note I want to make is that this is our first year doing it in the Congresswoman's office And so we will be Sending around a survey for folks to fill out We certainly want to learn by doing and get better and make this a better event even in the future So we look forward to getting your constructive feedback on that and a final thank you This is a team effort putting this on but an especially big Thank you to Morgan Nichols on our staff who really led this whole thing and so a big thank you to her So as as you folks know, this is a national competition nearly every congressional district in the nation participates But it did start right here in Vermont, which I think is really cool Former representative and senator Jim Jeffords is the one who created it nationally So we're it's really nice for us here in Vermont especially But for the very first time in this competition It is my great pleasure to introduce a Congresswoman to It's so wonderful to see you all it's it's such a treat Not just to be outside of DC and back in my home district would be able to spend this time with all of you so Good morning. I couldn't be more thrilled to be here I'm Congresswoman Becca Ballant as David said the first woman to represent Vermont and Congress And I'm so proud to be carrying on this Incredibly important tradition here in Vermont of celebrating student art as a former teacher as a mom as a writer I know how important it is to foster creativity and a love of the arts in our students and to make that a Continued priority in schools. I was fortunate enough at a very early age To be taught that creativity Was something of real value It wasn't an add-on that it would help me to expand my understanding of the world and in my adulthood I've come to see that imagination and innovation greatly contribute to more vibrant More robust communities and in a larger more vital sense creative endeavors simply make life worth living It's not an afterthought. It's a core part of who we are as humans and creative pursuits have been Really the steadiest guideposts in my life when my ailing grandmother moved in with us when I was in high school We had to do a lot of shuffling of rooms in my house to make a space for her and my siblings and all I all had to make You know space sacrifices and I remember not worrying so much about where I would sleep I was worried about where I was going to have my space to do art I wanted to make sure that I'd have a corner to continue to create and my childhood And my early adulthood was really filled with hours and hours of printmaking and cartoon drawing and Still life drawing and in high school I added watercolor and then when I was in college. I added design classes and that has really been a Throughline to my political career as well. I need creative outlets in order for me to deal with The intensity that is politics. I want to say too as I was looking around downstairs It's clear that all of you are incredibly Creative and innovative in your thinking and something that I noticed in the artist. I walked around downstairs is that Clearly we are all struggling with such big emotions right now because of the pandemic because of the isolation that came from that and because of the larger Social and political angst that we find ourselves in and I see that reflected so beautifully in the art So thank you for being vulnerable. Thank you for contributing your art to this competition. It is not easy To show somebody Your creative side and then to hang it up on a wall for other people to walk by So I want to just thank you regardless of You know who ends up winning this amazing competition The fact that you were able to contribute your artwork is an amazing gift to yourself But also to everybody else in that room. So thank you for that the Congressional art competition as David said was started by congressman Jim Jeffords who then went on to be a State senator and When I walk through my building in DC I work at an office building called Longworth and I Usually walk outside to get to the comp you know to get to the capital because I need fresh air to clear my mind But on those days when it's rainy or cold or windy or my staff is telling me we're too rushed to be able to go Outside that I have to go in the tunnels I always know That there's something wonderful and magical waiting for me down there, which is all of the artwork Sent in from every congressional district from across the country In every single time and I drive my staff a little crazy every single time I slow down by certain pieces and I always say the same thing Can you believe a high school student at that? Can you believe that that someone who's a sophomore junior or senior in high school did that and that could be on the wall of A gallery anywhere in this country. That's the amazing gift that this competition brings to all of us so Art has always been extremely important to me and it continues to be important to me But now it feels like an absolute imperative for all of us in these dark times. We need Creativity to assuage our grief To celebrate our triumphs to soothe our loneliness To remind us all of our shared humanity and honestly just to simply delight in beauty and an imagination So I want to thank all the teachers here as well First for creating space in your schools Where students and young artists can feel safe and tune the rest of the world out and just Create that was a place of refuge for me Throughout high school and in college and I just want to take a moment right now Everybody thank you teachers And congratulations to all the students and the teachers and the parents and the schools and the arts Organizations and community partners who have made this time possible for all of us I'm so thankful that I get to represent a state that values and celebrates the arts and creativity And of course a special thank you to the students You are fueling our imagination You are shining light into darkness and you are Giving us hope that we have better days ahead So thank you Next up we are going to have Amy Cunningham from the Vermont Arts Council to announce the county winners When you are announced if you could please come up the stairs on that side where Morgan is standing You'll come across the stage shake some hands get a picture taken and go down on that side and We're very excited Good morning. What an honor to be here. My name is Amy Cunningham and I Am representing the Vermont Arts Council at what a joy to see the incredible array of work downstairs I'm just really overwhelmed by the talent so I have the the honor of announcing the county winners and I will begin with Bennington County and The students name is Lillian Bombria is this perfect She's from Arlington Memorial High School. Her teacher is Christie Wood Congratulations, Lillian Next up we have Caledonia County The winner from Caledonia County is Ellery Norwood the work is simple joy from Lincoln Institute Congratulations Ellery Thank you Next up we're going in alphabetical order on these counties if you hadn't Determined that already Chinden County No electric the work is Chinatown from the Burlington Technical Center teacher is Ashley Stagner Congratulations Noah Next up is Lemoyle County The winner from Lemoyle County is Ronan Stefansky The modern dilemma is the work from Green Mountain Tech teachers Matt Neckers Next up is Orange County and the student winner is Madeleine Houghton The work is my storm my peace my calm from Blue Mountain Union High School teacher is Jennifer Duby Moving on to Orleans County And the student is Isha McNulty the work is called Boys Don't Cry from Lake Region Union High School teacher is Stephanie Harper We have the teacher accepting the award Wonderful. Thank you Stephanie Terrific All right, we're moving on to Rutland County and the student winner is Gareth Fox Talk between past and future self from Poltney High School teacher is Melissa Next up we have Washington County The student winner is Eva Poutre Beauty is in the eye of the butterfly from Harwood Union High School asked, but not least we have Windsor County Student is Dylan Moss The work is crabbing from Woodstock Union High School teachers Katrina Jemerson Next up we're gonna have the judges choice awards each of the judges will be handing out an award First up we will have Cynthia Cagle Cynthia Cagle is a Mexican-American artist whose work explores the metaphysical relationship between identity and nature Using her experiences as a biracial woman Cynthia creates paintings collages and murals that investigate themes related to biology relationships generational trauma and the impact of colonialism Born and raised in Los Angeles Cynthia study primatology which included since at the Gibbon Conservation Center in Museum of Natural History She received her BA in Biological Anthropology and Studio Art from Pitzer College, and she relocated to Vermont in 2004 with her family Leveraging her unique style to reckon with her own story and drawing on her passion for flora and fauna Cynthia's work is activist in nature as well as a deeply personal interrogation of what it means to be of Mexican-American An indigenous ancestry a woman and a mother She creates her distinctive imagery Ancestors birds animals in color with oil paint on wood as well as in other mediums such as ceramics graphite water color printmaking and acrylics Thank you so much for having me here today. It's been just an incredible Experiencing so much talent in the room downstairs from our young people in Vermont Okay Artists seek to make sense of the world through image and color line and shape This is exactly what this young artist from Caledonia County has done Owen Young Allen's painting healing childhood trauma takes the complex theme of repairing the past and Offers a renewed vision of healing The figure featured in this work is a young person whose skin is a patchwork quilt The child is literally sewing themselves together Patiently stitching a tear in the fabric of self The tears on the forehead of the subject of the painting the hands raised and carefully healing the rip with needle and thread The background is a blurry expanse of undefined space Providing the viewer with the opportunity to focus on the unfolding story of the child's attempt to suture the past The layers of color blues and greens in a plum-like violet evoke a dreamlike quality and Yet the lighting of the painting offers a sense of realism as well This contrast of objective materiality and uncanny imagery Hightens that experience of looking at the art Through color and brushstroke Owen Young Allen has created a deep sense of loss and melancholy a Mature project that suggests not just the versatility from a technical standpoint But the importance of theme and narrative a Hopeful message perhaps that with time healing even a torn garment may be mended excuse me Owen, I don't know where you are in this room But thank you for your courage and honesty some of the best art is that which speaks raw truths as you have done here The depth of your work will resonate with many who get the opportunity to see your painting congratulations The next judge's choice award will be delivered by Harlan Mack Harlan Mack is a multidisciplinary artist working narratively through painting sculpture and oral storytelling To build a fictitious future world that regards themes of experience environment labor history and potential In addition to his work as an artist Harlan serves as part-time MFA faculty at Northern Vermont University and Manages the sculpture program at Vermont studio center in Johnson, Vermont. It's so nice to be here and see all your faces I think first off. I just want to mention how I was blown away by all the work that I saw In the show. It's really wonderful So I'm really really happy to be one of the judges here So When I first saw Logan's piece I I just I was like Immediately floored and and there's so many really wonderful elements to this piece and they really reminded me of my experience as a learner as an artist and how We create a composition and how we learn to create a composition and the ability of Logan's Soudal to see light in The throughout the entire composition and then relay that back to us with like this really emotional attention I think was what took me right away So I mean I think really the first thing that I noticed is that the entire piece is extremely complete So like every element is accounted for and then every element actually has this impact on the eye The color in the piece is really masterful it's something that I think a lot of learners take an incredible amount of time to sort of pick up on and The thing of my favorite detail in this piece is the The reflective light on the on the passenger side side window It's it's sort of it indicated to me that there was like an extreme level of detail and awareness And and I found that actually you know I think that level of awareness is something that's one of maybe the most difficult things to learn as a young artist and to create Composition that's so just syrup and So much to it But I think mostly I'm just really excited to see Logan's work progress and see how How your life as an artist unfolds and I'm really excited by this piece and even ask them I was I was like right away like this one over there Appreciate it. Thank you. The next judge's choice award will be delivered by Stefania jurist Stefania jurist is an interdisciplinary artist who addresses the fraught and intertwined relationship between humans and nature By utilizing natural materials and installations sculptures and prints Urist earned her master fine arts degree from the school of the art Institute of Chicago in 2022 BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2013 and has attended multiple artist residencies and fellowships Her dedication and skills are evident in the numerous grants and awards She has received to create new work and group and solo shows and sculpture gardens around the U.S. Stefania first off I'd like to reiterate how strong all of the work that we saw was we were here for hours longer than we were expecting to be because we really wanted to investigate each and every piece and Even if you didn't win an award today I really want to strongly encourage everyone in this room to keep making artwork Whether you do that in your career or just for yourself It's so important and there's so much talent here. So please continue to Foster that creativity and keep going So my choice for the judges choice award is white noise by Vivian source. I Chose this piece because of the conceptual depth and technical ability exhibited in this drawing The drawing hatching technique and perspective is really strong and unique There are lots of hidden details both in the subject matter and in the marketing skills The circular people draws the viewer in and asks really important questions The concept really resonates with me because of the climate change crisis that we are all experiencing globally The way this drawing exhibits the screaming of the media people in the planet has turned into white background noise That idea is very provocative. I Particularly love how the buildings and windows are lit up Highlighting that people are watching this flood and disaster happen, but unable to do anything about it Congratulations Vivian. I hope you keep drawing and making her So now I'm going to I have the pleasure of announcing the third place winner So the third place winner that we all agreed upon unanimously of the Congressional art competition is Apalena Mabelchi, I'm so sorry if I pronounce her name wrong Her photo is looking away This photo demonstrates very high skill and technical photo ability the tonal range in the black and white photo shows that the lighting was perfect and It shows in the details The focus and detail in the face is amazing while blurring the background and focus that to bring focus onto the subject The subject's gaze is confident but defiant They are constantly they are consciously ignoring the camera knowing and acknowledging its existence But consciously looking away The conceptual depth of this piece a portrait of a young person Choosing their inner calm over outer distress Resonates especially in light of recent events such as the global movement towards racial equality and Contemporary fight for self-identified identity in marginalized communities So social justice is incredibly timely and important So the idea that this person is finding inner calm is very powerful and important Thank you so much for your submission and congratulations Apalena. Please continue to make work For second place winner in the Congressional Arts competition We are pleased to announce Bennington County Bella engineers painting entitled transformer rhetorical questions Engineers transformer rhetorical questions is both a poignant tribute to the power of art the title refers to Lou Reed's seminal 1972 album transformer and a richly composed conceptually complex examination of identity within the queer community Like Reed's album this painting rocks Engineering has offered the viewer a double portrait The two faces seem to meld into one another and the area where they overlap is an extraordinary exploration of transparency The detail and warmth of the faces picture draw the viewer in and then ambiguous expressions of the subject Stoke curiosity as to the story being told by the painting Surrounding the somber faces are a number of symbols all richly painted in hues of yellow the Greek letter lambda carnations and triangles What these symbols have in common is their resonance within the struggle for the LG Bqt plus rights clearly this painting is telling a story that is both bound in history as well as personal identity and Is so relevant today The fact that this painting is inspired by and referencing the Lou Reed album transformer is vital to understanding the rich conceptual depth of this piece Reed was a leader during the 70s in questioning heterosexual norms Using his music to offer listeners a richer broader definition of sexual orientation Produced by David Bowie the album is seen to this day in a positive light within the struggle for LG Bqt plus rights This piece is technically complex and beautifully rendered. That's obvious What takes it to another level is the way in which its symbolism references in text challenge the viewer as An artist's engineering plunges deeply into the way in which imagery color and line can tell a story And it can also echo and amplify both history and emotion It makes sense. The piece has the words rhetorical questions in the title The artist wrote in a statement accompanying the piece quote And this is important is the pride that queer people feel really self-assurance and happiness in their own identities Or is it just happiness because their identities aren't being oppressed Justice people cannot see light without darkness can queer people not be prideful unless they are threatened with discrimination and violence unquote Engineering is offered as compelling questions that serve to deepen our relationship within the piece This painting asks us to consider questions of self history and identity All while offering us a gift in return a beautifully rendered portrait of a fascinating subject Please join me in offering Congratulations to Bella Ingenere an artist of resounding depth and a painter with a bright future Well done Bella. I get super nervous when I come up But I'm really honored to to announce the first place winner And Please apologize if I pronounce the name improperly Their name is Shaqe I'll say that again Shaqe Hedovian Few remarks about the work I Mean, I think it's I think especially when you see the work in person. You'll see that this is a really beautiful Beautifully rendered piece But I'm glad that you're up here, too Yeah, it's a beautifully rendered self-portrait and When you see it in person you get to see that there's there's some sort of hidden elements Within the work if you see inside of the pomegranate you see these chess pieces and the frayed canvas Which is like a whole another world inside of the pomegranate? I really appreciate it Another element about the painting that I that I that I finally probably already appreciated was that there was Really like a a complimentary set of mark making styles that are happening to the piece And those combinations of you know brushstrokes really support the strong sense of poetic and vibrant within the composition Like the detail in the brushwork throughout Has also sort of it creates the sense of the boldness and energy and Also, you know, obviously the iconic imagery helps tell of the story of cultural pride specifically from me The details within you know sort of inspired me and then I've met another viewers as well to sort of investigate further into the meaning of these cultural elements When I began looking into The elements depicted here, you know, I was able to learn that pomegranate nor Thank you symbolizes life and abundance And I imagine one of the things And then in Armenian mythology the pomegranate has 365 seeds one for each day in the year and then Inside of the pomegranate in the hand you see you can see chess pieces Among other things, but the chess pieces indicate also an element of cultural pride and impact that the game of chess has had on the culture And the overall position Of the figure and there seems to reference you know also like elements of Armenian traditional dance Which I thought was really quite nice because I've looked at it and I see this Very impactful poids and position of the body and when I was researching and looking into it further I was like, oh, that's almost identical to the dance. I thought it was a really well-added element So I found I found I think we all found that this work is, you know Not only extremely captivating and it's composition and expression, but it also invites to be a bit more about Armenian culture and I thought that was a really important aspect of the work And I really look forward to seeing what you do as you progress and all of you as well I think this is I think every all of you really deserve a huge round of applause Oh Congratulations to everybody and congratulations again to shaka whose work will be going down to Washington DC to be hung in the hallways of Congress for the next year The Congresswoman is going to close out with a final remark in just a minute I have three announcements briefly to get through one is that in the next week or two We are going to have an online gallery of all the work That was submitted that'll be on the Congresswoman's website Hopefully within two weeks and we can send around a link to the teachers when that happens All the artwork downstairs has been taken down and collected by school So if you're a teacher here with students, please collect that artwork. It should be organized according to your school's Students in a moment after the Congresswoman closes us out. We are going to have a group photo So if you have hung art downstairs, please come up to the front and we're going to do a big group photo with the Congresswoman And I think there were a few students who have not taken an Individual photo with the Congresswoman if you fall into that category, please stick around after the group photo And we'll get those done and with that any further ado to close it out I'm going back about my message to you is really simple Keep creating Keep putting your art out there in the world if you are going to pursue a life and art Welcome welcome into that incredibly important Space that we need so much in this world right now and if art is not your chosen path Keep it as something important that you go back to To heal to nurture to ground in the first few weeks when I was in Congress It was very disorienting And I said to my staff down there like I feel like I'm Kind of losing it here Because I was working with some really really difficult people in my committee some of the most extreme Members of Congress and I couldn't seem to figure out how to get myself reset And one of the things that I did Was put on my coffee table in my office the work of Alison Bechdel who is an amazing cartoonist so that every time that I would come back from a really hard Committee meeting that would be the first thing that I would see which was really healing And then the other thing I did Was I bought an extra guitar For my office so that I've got one of Vermont when I come back here that I needed to create I needed to have music. I needed to have Something that I turned back to in order to do the other work that I do so please Keep creativity as an important part of your life. And if you're not a senior Please contribute more art to this competition next year. Thank you so much Students coming up for a picture. Thank you everybody so much. We're grateful