Scholastic Art Awards

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The College of Arts + Architecture is honored to be an Affiliate Partner for the Mid-Carolina Region of the Scholastic Art Awards, serving students and educators from central North Carolina and South Carolina. Counties in our region include Alexander, Alleghany, Anson, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Catawba, Cleveland, Davidson, Davie, Forsyth, Gaston, Guilford, Iredell, Lincoln, Mecklenburg, Montgomery, Randolph, Richmond, Rockingham, Rowan, Stanly, Stokes, Surry, Union, Wilkes, Yadkin, and York.
 


Congratulations to our 2023 Mid Carolina Scholastic Art Award Winners! 

Thank you to everyone who participated in the 100th anniversary of the Awards 

2023 Gold and Silver National Medals

Ten students from the Mid Carolina Region are also national winners!  Their work was selected from Gold Keys across the nation and will be displayed at Affirmation Arts Gallery and the Scholastic Headquarters in New York City starting in June. National winners and their families are invited to attend the National Ceremony at Carnegie Hall in early June. Congrats!
 

2023 Gold Keys  |  2023 Silver Keys  |  2023 Honorable Mentions

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See the Gold and Silver keys in person!  The 2023 Scholastic Art Exhibition will be from March 17 - April 23 at the Mint Museum Uptown. The Mint has generously extended free admission to Scholastic students, families, and educators during these dates.
 
 
Tour the Adams Outdoor Billboard Award Winners using this interactive map

Watch the 2023 Ceremony below!


The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards have an impressive legacy dating back to 1923. Over the years, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards have grown to become the longest-running, most prestigious program for creative teens in the U.S. and the nation’s largest source of scholarships for young artists and writers. A noteworthy roster of past winners includes Andy Warhol, Sylvia Plath, Truman Capote, Richard Avedon, Robert Redford, Joyce Carol Oates, Stephen King, and John Updike.
 

The process begins across the country as artists and writers in grades 7-12 submit work in 28 categories of art and writing to a network of regional affiliates who present award ceremonies and exhibits for selected works on a local level. Gold Keys, the highest awards, are then submitted from each region for national adjudication by luminaries in the visual and literary arts, some of whom are past award recipients. National Gold and Silver Medal-winning students and their teachers receive national recognition and are invited to attend the exhibit in New York and award ceremony at Carnegie Hall.

Students across America submitted nearly 340,000 original works last year. The top art and writing at the regional level were moved onto the national stage, where more than 2,700 students earned national medals. Through the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, students receive opportunities for recognition, exhibition, publication, and scholarships. 


Selection Process 

Submissions of artwork to the Mid-Carolina Region Scholastic Awards are evaluated in the categories of architecture & industrial design, ceramics & glass, comic art, design, digital art, drawing & illustration, editorial cartoonexpanded projects, fashion, film & animation, jewelry, mixed media, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and art portfolio. The entries are classified according to media, then sorted by grade level (middle school and high school). 

Panels of regional jurors, made up of museum curators, college and university professors, professional artists, and veteran K-12 art teachers, evaluate the work in a blind judging process. Jurors are chosen for their expertise in each category and evaluate work based on originality, technical skill, and personal vision.  

Digital images of Gold Key artworks are sent for adjudication at the national level by a second set of panelists, and national Gold Medal artworks are displayed in New York at the national exhibitions.

Congratulations to our past Scholastic Art winners!


Questions?

Contact Tesh Ramey, UNC Charlotte's College of Arts + Architecture's Arts Education Specialist

Sponsors

UNC Charlotte would like to thank the following organizations for their generous support of the Mid-Carolina Region Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. We couldn't do it without you!