Rose seeks student submissions for Congressional Art Competition

SOUTHERN BROOKLYN — If you love to paint, draw, sketch or take photographs, and live within the 11th Congressional District, which includes Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bath Beach, parts of Bensonhurst, Gravesend, Sheepshead Bay and all of Staten Island, now is the time to put your talent to good use.

U.S. Rep. Max Rose is asking high school students who reside in or attend school in the district to submit their original artwork for the 2020 Congressional Art Competition. The theme of this year’s contest is “Salute to Public Servants,” honoring those who serve the community and help make it a better place to live.

“The Congressional Art Competition is a chance to show the entire country what Staten Island and South Brooklyn are all about,” Rose said.

“The first thing I want people to know about our district when they see us represented in the halls of the Capitol is the way we respect our public servants. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to our teachers, firefighters, soldiers, cops, paramedics and everyone else who devotes their time and lives to making Staten Island and South Brooklyn a better place. I look forward to seeing how our students will put their talents to work honoring the heroes amongst us,” Rose added.

Students are asked to submit their artwork by Monday, April 13, to Rose’s district office at 265 New Dorp Lane, Staten Island, NY 10306.

Rose will then pick one winner, whose artwork will be displayed in the U.S. Capitol for one year, and runners-up whose artwork will hang in Rose’s Washington and district offices in Brooklyn and Staten Island.

The winner will receive two round-trip tickets to the nation’s capital to attend the Congressional Art Competition Reception with winners from across the country. Winners will also be eligible for a $3,000 scholarship to the Savannah College of Art and Design.

The artwork must be two-dimensional, and can be no larger than 26 inches high, 26 inches wide and 4 inches deep. Accepted mediums include paintings, drawings, collages, prints, mixed media, computer generated art and photographs.

This year’s winning submission will replace Susan Wagner High School student Autumn Ferrer’s “Postcards 9/11 Memorial overlooking the Tower of Freedom,” which has been hanging in the United States Capitol for the past year.

While all of last year’s award-winning artwork was submitted by Staten Island students, Rose would like to see more Brooklyn finalists in this year’s competition.

“It was exciting to see such incredible submissions last year for our first Congressional Art Competition and I’m looking forward to growing on that success this year with artwork that highlights our incredible public servants.” Rose told this paper.

“Every week I talk to many cops, firefighters, teachers and nurses who call South Brooklyn home, and I can’t wait to see Brooklyn students pay tribute to them,” he added.

For more information on submission requirements, students can visit Rose’s website or call the District Office at 718-667-3313.