Art Competition

Congressman Robert Pittenger is excited to announce the 2016 Congressional Art Competition!  Open to high school students in North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District, the first place artwork will be displayed in the U.S. Capitol for one year.

Artwork may be dropped off at Congressman Pittenger’s offices in Charlotte and Mooresville from March 21st through April 4th during normal business hours.

For 2016, five finalists will be selected through a Facebook competition hosted on Congressman Pittenger’s Facebook page.  The competition will begin at noon on April 5, 2016 and remain open until noon on April 12, 2016.  The five students whose pieces of art receive the most “likes” will become finalists.  Additionally, a sixth finalist will be chosen as a “Wild Card” by a professional judge from the Art Institute of Charlotte.

The first place winner will be chosen from those six finalists by a panel of art experts, Congressional staff, and Congressman Pittenger.

The first place winner will receive the Congressional Art Award:

• The winning entry will be sent to hang in the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. for one year. 
• The student and a guest will be flown to Washington, D.C. to attend the national reception and to view their artwork in the Capitol.
• $3000 academic scholarship to a specific art institution.

The other four finalists will have their artwork hung in Congressman Pittenger’s district offices.

First, second and third place finalists will also receive complimentary admission into a summer studio art program in Charlotte.  The summer program is five days of creative workshops that put high school students in a hands-on, collaborative environment under the artistic and technical guidance of industry-savvy instructors.  This program helps talented art students test-drive an arts-oriented/creative education.

The 2016 Congressional Art Competition is carried out at no expense to the Federal Government.  All expenses are provided locally in the community.

Click here for all rules and regulations for students and teachers.

Artwork will hang in the Capitol for the entire year of the exhibition and cannot be returned to the students earlier. Students should, therefore, submit artwork they will not need for other purposes.

The Congressional Art Competition began in 1982 to provide an opportunity for members of Congress to encourage and recognize the artistic talents of their young constituents. Since then, over 650,000 high school students have been involved with the nationwide competition.

Click here for more information on the competition, including drop-off locations.    

To participate in the 2016 Art Competition, please fill out and print the Student Release Form and bring it with you when you drop off your artwork.