About the Student Art Contest

The theme Wildlife of Arkansas  acknowledges the natural beauty of Arkansas by providing the perfect inspiration for students to explore their natural artistic abilities. The term Wildlife is not limited to animals, but can also include wildflowers, natural landscapes like our public lands, streams & rivers, etc. 

The Wildlife of Arkansas student art contest is made possible
in part  through a grant from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission,  the guidance from the creative folks at Creative Ideas,  and the judging expertise of the University of Central Arkansas' Art Department.  

Guidelines for Art (painting, drawing or collage)
Contest is FREE and open to k–12th grade students in Arkansas. 
One entry per student accepted.
Artwork must be student’s original work completed in the 2022-2023 school year. 
All submissions must be titled.  
 
The art contest is virtual  with judging done via photographs that are submitted online.  Medium can be oil, acrylic, charcoal, pastel, watercolor, graphite, ink, and mixed media on canvas, wood, paper or poster board no larger than 24"x32". 

Three tips for taking awesome pictures of your Artwork:
#1 Use good lighting- The best is non-direct outside lighting. No glare or shadows
#2 Make sure it's in focus and flat.
#3 Edit it...but do it sparingly.  (Crop it, adjust lighting etc., just make sure Image should represents your actual artwork.)

For more tips on how to photograph your artwork check out this video: 

  Judging
Artwork submitted online will be judged on creativity, skill and interpretation of the theme.
A panel of professional artists will select 4 winners in each grade.  

In addition to cash awards,  winning artwork may be requested to be part of a traveling art exhibition that will be showcased at State Game and Fish Nature Centers.  

Awards are as follows:
Awards to be given to students  with top art in each grade. 

Event Disclaimer
 Judges decisions are final. 
AR Wildlife Federation and Creative Ideas reserve the right to reproduce submitted artwork
for promotional purposes (Example: Use in  AWF Facebook ads, Arkansas Out of Doors magazine, and the annual Wildlife of Arkansas Student Art Calendar).
Not responsible for lost or damaged art.

*Important: Teacher or student is responsible for entering his or hers artwork in the correct grade level for each student. For example:  1st grade student artwork must be submitted in the 1st grade category,  2nd grade students artwork must be submitted in the 2nd grade category.  etc.