View Last Year’s Competition
February 4 through April 16, 2023
This annual high school art exhibition features exemplary work created by high school students throughout the 14th Congressional District and Hillsborough County.
Important Dates
On or before November 29, 2023
*Online submission form filled out for every entry (public, private, and charter schools)
Thursday, December 7, 2023
Teachers notified of accepted works
On or before December 21 at NOON
BY NOON – Deliver accepted works to Laura Hobby, Art Supervisor, ROSSAC, Route 7 (public schools only)
December 8 through December 23
Deliver accepted works directly to TMA (public, private and charter schools)
February 3 – April 14, 2024
Exhibit on display at Tampa Museum of Art
Sunday, April 7, 2024
Awards Reception, 2:00pm – 4:00pm; Award Presentation @ 2:30pm
Week of April 22
Work returned to teachers through school mail (public schools only)
April 18 through April 30
Pick-up work directly from TMA (private and charter schools)
Mid June
National Awards Ceremony for Congressional Choice, Washington, DC
*Private, public, and charter school teachers should choose Hillsborough County Public Schools when selecting an organization on Artful Evaluation
Competition Guidelines
1. Each high school is permitted to submit no more than three (3) entries per art teacher.
2. Works must be current, completed since January 1, 2022 under the direction of the student’s art teacher.
3. Size and Weight Requirements—
- Each piece is unmated and unframed and is no larger than 20” x 20” (x 4” if low relief) and weigh less than 15 lbs.
- Canvas, weavings or other works not requiring matting or framing can be no larger than 26” x 26” x 4” and be ready to hang.
- Free standing 3-dimensional pieces can be no larger than 18” x 18” x 24” and cannot be considered for the Congressional Award.
4. Acceptable media for artwork are as follows:
- 2-Dimensional work:
- Paintings: oil, acrylics, watercolor, etc.
- Drawings: pastels, colored pencil, pencil, charcoal, ink, markers
- Collage
- Prints: lithographs, silkscreen, block prints
- Mixed Media: use of more than two mediums
- Computer-generated art
- Photography
- 3-Dimensional work:
- Any sculptural medium, ceramics, wood, fiber arts, jewelry, metalwork, glass, beadwork, mixed media
5. Each piece must be accompanied by one student information/ release form. Each piece is also required to have a Label securely affixed to the back of the artwork (that will remain throughout the entire exhibition).
6. Each entry must be submitted through online forms. Teachers will be notified of accepted works the last week of November. *Teachers will only need to drop off accepted works.
7. Each entry must be original in concept, design and execution and may not violate any U.S. copyright laws. Any entry that has been copied from an existing photo (other than the student’s own), painting, graphic, advertisement, or any other work produced by another person is a violation of the competition rules and will not be accepted. Work entered must in the original medium (that is, not a scanned reproduction of a painting, drawing or sculpture).
8. Works should reflect the high school art curriculum’s quality art practices and demonstrate knowledge, technical skill and creativity. Artwork should not contain profane or obscene words or images that the general public would find objectionable or would offend religious, cultural, gender or racial groups.
9. One 2-dimensional work will be selected to be the Congressional Choice Award. It must be by a student residing in or attending a high school located in the 14th Congressional District. Artwork will hang in the Capitol for the entire year of the exhibition and cannot be returned to the student earlier. Therefore, students should submit work they will not need for other purposes. The Congressional Choice work will be professionally framed by the Tampa Museum of Art before being sent to Washington. The work must adhere to the policy of the House Office Building Commission and not depict subjects of contemporary political controversy or be of a sensationalistic or gruesome nature. It is necessary that artwork sent to Washington be reviewed by the panel chaired by the Architect of the Capitol and any artwork not in consonance with the Commission’s policy will be omitted from the exhibit. The panel will make the final decision regarding the suitability to hang any artwork in the Congressional Art Competition exhibition in the Capitol. At the end the year-long exhibition, the artwork will be returned to the student.
10. All students, parents and teachers are invited to the awards ceremony at the Tampa Museum of Art.Awards will be announced and students will be recognized for their participation.
11. Works (with the exception of the Congressional Choice) will be returned after the museum exhibition