Friday, May. 09, 2008
Art award lands teen's face in U.S. Capitol
Central High student’s self-portrait earns him a Congressional National Art award
By SANDRA ENGELLAND
Richard Ward’s self-portrait, "Harmony," will hang in the U.S. Capitol building.
Ward’s self-portrait recently won the prestigious Congressional National Art Competition for Kay Granger’s District 12.
Since 1982, the annual Congressional Art Competition has showcased outstanding student art from many of the nation’s Congressional districts. Winning artwork is displayed for one year in a gallery in the Cannon Tunnel, the passage that connects the U.S. Capitol with the Cannon House Office Building. The gallery is a prominent attraction on Capitol tours.
The piece was done using electronic media. Ward looked at a photograph of himself playing the trumpet and created the main image by drawing with a tablet PC. For the background, he scanned sheet music into his computer and altered it to make it look old.
"I really wanted to do something with music because I like music, and put it into art and combine them," he said.
He switched from band to art last year, but his love for both inspired the self-portrait.
Ward spent most of spring break creating the piece, and his hard work has paid some big dividends.
He will get an all-expenses paid trip to Washington, D.C., for the June 25 installation. Ward has never been to the nation’s capital and plans to spend several days sightseeing.
He also received a $250 savings bond and two $5,000 scholarship offers. Ward said he would accept the scholarship from the Savannah College of Art and Design.
Jeanie Cruce, Ward’s Pre-AP Art 2 teacher, encouraged him to enter. "I teach electronic media, but Richard is self-taught. He’s done all that on his own."
Ward has been honing his drawing skills in class, which helped him win the award.
The entries were judged by five area artists. During judging, the jurors called the school to confirm how the piece was created. Cruce said, "None of them had experience in electronic media. They were so impressed. They could tell it was drawn."
Ward said he plans to pursue a career working in electronic media. "I want to go into graphic design, maybe advertising work with a bigger company."
Cruce had another student win the Congressional Art award some 20 years ago when she taught at Fort Worth Christian School. The winner was Dale Carman, co-founder of Reel FX Animation Studios in Dallas. Reel FX has worked on movies, commercials, video games and music videos.
Cruce said that winning the national award helped Carman begin his business. "That really gave him the confidence to make it his goal. It gave him a real confidence in himself and his work."
Cruce hopes that Ward receives a similar boost to pursue his passion.
She plans to retire at the end of the school year. When she was entering several students in the contest, she thought it would be wonderful to end her teaching career with another congressional winner. She did not make the trip to D.C. 20 years ago; this time, she wouldn’t dream of missing it.
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