BRATTLEBORO — A total of 97 youth from across Vermont have been recognized by the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards for their exceptional artistic and literary talent.
The students' award-winning artwork and writing will be exhibited at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center (BMAC) from Friday, Feb. 18 through March 5. The exhibit will culminate in an awards ceremony on Saturday, March 5, at noon, presented in person and via livestream.
This year's keynote speaker will be poet, writer, and photographer Shanta Lee Gander. To attend online, register at brattleboromuseum.org.
The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards program offers prestigious national recognition for aspiring visual artists and writers.
Each year, students in grades 7 through 12 are invited to submit art and writing in dozens of categories, including ceramics, digital art, painting, photography, poetry, science fiction, and personal essay/memoir.
Submissions are judged statewide, and awards consist of Gold Key, Silver Key, and Honorable Mention. The state winners are considered for national awards, including college scholarships, museum exhibitions, and publication opportunities.
A list of all award winners appears at brattleoromuseum.org. National awards will be announced by the end of March.
Since its founding in 1923, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards has nurtured the talents and helped launch the careers of many creative visionaries. Past winners include Truman Capote, Lena Dunham, Stephen King, Sylvia Plath, John Updike, and Andy Warhol, among many others.
In 2014, Edil Hassan, a Somali refugee and high school senior from Burlington, joined that rarefied group when she was selected as one of only 16 recipients nationwide of the Awards' highest honor, a Portfolio Gold Medal and $10,000 college scholarship.
This year's award-winning work was selected from among a total of 521 submissions by 160 students from throughout the state.
Local Gold Key winners included:
• Brody Adams, Grade 12, Vermont Academy
• Cameron Allembert, Grade 12, Brattleboro Union High School
• Isabelle Armand, Grade 12, Putney School
• Madeline Bozetarnik, Grade 10, Brattleboro Union High School
• Jiaqi/Elfin Cai, Grade 10, Putney School
• Meghan Frost-Clark, Grade 11, Brattleboro Union High School
• Django Grace, Grade 10, Brattleboro Union High School
• Isabelle Greenewalt, Grade 10, Putney School
• Sylvie Normandeau, Grade 12, Brattleboro Union High School
• Hannah Sardinas, Grade 11, Putney School
• Willa Sheehan, Grade 12, Putney School
• Leila Tomlinson, Grade 11, Putney School
BMAC has administered the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards for Vermont since 2011. According to BMAC Manager of Education & Community Engagement Programs Kirsten Martsi, participation in the program has grown steadily since its inception.