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Art Competition

Congressman Emmer with Hannah Warner from Holy Spirit Academy in Monticello, Minnesota. Hannah won the art competition for her oil painting titled "Fading Autumn". 

Each spring, a nation-wide high school arts competition is sponsored by the Members of the U.S. House of Representatives. The Artistic Discovery Contest is an opportunity to recognize and encourage the artistic talent in the nation, as well as in our Congressional District.

The Artistic Discovery Contest is open to all high school students in our District. The winning artwork of our district's competition will be displayed for one year in the U.S. Capitol. The exhibit in Washington will include the winning artwork from all participating districts from around the country. The winning artwork is also featured on House.gov's Congressional Art Competition page.

The following is a summary of the Congressional Art Competition rules:

Artwork entered in the contest may be up to 28 inches by 28 inches, may be up to 4 inches in depth, and not weigh more than 15 pounds. If your artwork is selected as the winning piece, it must arrive framed and must still measure no larger than the above maximum dimensions.

  • Paintings - including oil, acrylics, and watercolor
  • Drawings - including pastels, colored pencil, pencil, charcoal, ink, and markers (It is recommended that charcoal and pastel drawings be fixed.)
  • Collages - must be two dimensional
  • Prints - including lithographs, silkscreen, and block prints
  • Mixed Media - use of more than two mediums such as pencil, ink, watercolor, etc.
  • Computer-generated art
  • Photography

All entries must meet the following criteria:

  • Be two dimensional
  • Be no larger than 26 inches wide by 26 inches tall by 4 inches thick
  • Not weigh more than 15 pounds, including frame
  • Be original in concept, design, and execution and may not violate any U.S. copyright laws.
  • Work entered must be in the original medium (that is, not a scanned reproduction of a painting or drawing).

Submissions for the 2024 competition are due to our District Office in Otsego by Friday, April 19th at 5:00 pm. 

2024 Rules for Students and Teachers can be found here

2024 Student Release Form can be found here

If you have any questions, please contact Barbara Harper by emailing Barbara.Harper@mail.house.gov.