By Nicole Thomas
Planning a visit to the Mississippi Museum of Art? Expect to see a lot of #StarkvilleSpark on display. SHS and AMS students hauled in eight gold keys in the 2016 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. Their original works will be part of an exhibit at the museum that opened this month.
SHS senior Justice Wynn collected four gold keys. Wynn and Sam Snell were awarded the judges’ highest marks for their work, which earned each of them an American Visions nomination.
Armstrong Middle School students Jack Perry, Jaylon Ashord, and Willis Claude were also awarded gold keys. AMS was one of only two middle schools in the state to produce gold key recipients.
The students’ artwork was selected from more than 2,000 entries recognizing outstanding achievement in the arts. Student submissions are blindly judged by leaders in the visual arts. Jurors look for works that exemplify the Awards’ core values: originality, technical skill, and the emergence of personal voice or vision. All Gold Key winners advance to compete at the national competition.
The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards continues to be the longest-running, most prestigious recognition program for creative teens in the U.S., and the largest source of scholarships for young artists and writers. The Scholastic Art Exhibition continues through March 6. Admission is free and open to the public. Here’s a sneak peak of what will be on display along with a complete list of winners:
2016 AMERICAN VISIONS NOMINEES
1. Justice Wynn, 12, Andrew Lark, Drawing and Illustration, Minds Reflections of Childs Play
2. Sam Snell, 11, Andrew Lark, Photography, Mississippi Spider Web
2016 GOLD KEY AWARDS
Starkville High School
1. Justice Wynn, 12, Drawing and Illustration, Mind’s Reflections of Child’s Play
2. Justice Wynn, 12, Drawing and Illustration, Sweet Cherry Lunchtime Snack
3. Justice Wynn, 12, Drawing and Illustration, Tea party
4. Justice Wynn, 12, Drawing and Illustration, Freedom of Knowledge
5. Sam Snell, 11, Photography, Mississippi Spider Web
Armstrong Middle School
1. Jack Perry, 8, Painting, Two Green Stars
2. Jaylon Ashford, 8, Drawing and Illustration, Amira
3. Willis Claude, 8, Painting, Rose
2016 SILVER KEY AWARDS
Starkville High School
1. Helen Peng, 9, Drawing and Illustration, Light
2. Wynn, 12, Drawing and Illustration, Fragile Family Passdowns
3. Sam Snell, 11, Photography, Mississippi Sunset
4. Taylor Clark, 11, Photography, The Boy That Wished He Could Fly
2016 HONORABLE MENTION AWARDS
Starkville High School
1. CiCi Zhang, 11, Photography, Paricaya (Identity)
2. Justice Wynn, 12, Drawing and Illustration, Fancy Sins of Life
3. Taylor Clark, 11, Photography, The Girl By The Window
Armstrong Middle School
1. Camille Bardon, 8, Painting, Cat Nip
2. Kate Phelps, 8, Painting, Watcher
Congratulations to our students and their art teachers, Andrew Lark and Mikel Franklin, on these outstanding achievements!