San Benito High School senior Jericho Coquilla earned third place in the annual Congressional Art Competition hosted by the office of Congressman Sam Farr, D-Carmel.
Farr announced the winners of the art contest, with Coquilla’s piece set to be displayed in the congressman’s Salinas office.
The following is the announcement from Farr’s office:
Rep. Sam Farr, D-Carmel, today announced that Jung Hoon Ki, a sophomore at Robert Louis Stevenson School, is the winner of the 2014 Congressional Art Competition: An Artistic Discovery. His winning piece, “Differing Perception of Covered Eyes”, will be displayed in the halls of the Capitol along with other students’ works from across the country.
Ki will travel to Washington, D.C., courtesy of Southwest Airlines, to be honored at a Congressional reception. He will also receive a $1500 renewable scholarship from the Savannah College of Art and Design.
Cristian Ponce, a junior at Dr. T.J. Owens Gilroy Early College Academy, was named the 2nd place winner with his piece “The Life of the Red Balloon.” His artwork will be prominently displayed in the congressman’s Washington office. San Benito High School senior Jericho Coquilla was named the third place winner, with “Young Dude”. His piece will be displayed in the congressman’s Salinas office.
The Congressional Art Competition was open to all local high school students in the 20th congressional district. A total of 29 entries were submitted from 13 schools from the district. The entries were judged by Lynn Diebold, President of the Arts Council for Monterey County, Kim Solano, a local artist and gallery owner and William Keland, Treasurer of the Arts Council for Monterey County.
The Artistic Discovery competition encourages and recognizes the rich artistic talents of young Americans. Students are allowed to submit various styles and types of art, ranging from paintings and drawings to photography and mixed media pieces. The winners are determined using criteria based on originality, skill of execution, excellence in use of materials and conceptual strength of the project.
The Congressional Art Competition began in 1982 to provide an opportunity for members of Congress to encourage and recognize the artistic talents of their young constituents. Since then, over 650,000 high school students have been involved with the nation-wide competition.
Last year, Aptos High School student Rachel Martin, was awarded first place for her entry “Walking in Israel.”
