Student art to be displayed in Capitol
On April 27, junior Jessica Han missed a call from Congresswoman Julia Brownley. So, instead of finding out that she had won the District-wide U.S. Congress High School Visual Arts Competition from the Congresswoman herself, she found out from a voicemail.
Han’s piece, a portrait she titled “Auburn”, was chosen to represent California’s 26th Congressional District. It will hang for a year in the Cannon Tunnel, the passageway connecting the House Office Building and the Capitol in Washington D.C, alongside other works from Congressional Districts across the country. She will be traveling to D.C. this summer to be recognized and to view her art in the Capitol.
According to Jennifer Kaye, AP and IB Art teacher, Newbury Park students participate in the Congressional art competition every year. “This is the first time we’ve had a winner or an honorable mention,” Kaye said. “I’m very excited that (Han) won”.
Senior Ernesto Ambrocio was also recognized with an honorable mention for his piece “E Pluribus Unum”, a photograph of water droplets refracting the seal of the House of Representatives. According to Ambrocio, his photo aims to represent how 435 diverse Congressional Districts come together to form one House of Representatives. “I felt that my picture was symbolic of how our government is supposed to work and how it does work,” Ambrocio said.
“I was very proud,” added Eric Lindroth, AP and IB Photography teacher. Although Ambrocio has had less than a year of photography experience, Lindroth admires how he “stepped up and put a lot of effort in to do something creative like that.”
Han entered the competition as both a freshman and a sophomore, but didn’t win either year. When she entered the competition this year, she didn’t expect to place, let alone win the entire contest. “The piece I entered last year I liked a lot more than the piece I entered this year,” Han said. “I thought I was going to do worse this year … it feels a lot better winning having lost.”
Ambrocio didn’t expect to be recognized either. “I wasn’t expecting it at all,” Ambrocio said. “I thought that out of the whole county I wouldn’t get anywhere near (winning). But it was a surprise and an honor, especially coming from Congresswoman Julia Brownley.”
Although submissions generally have a regional element, neither Han nor Ambrocio had that in mind when creating their pieces. Han actually drew inspiration for her piece from her IB Art portfolio theme of partially covered faces after browsing last year’s winners and seeing a large number of portraits among the winning pieces. “I’m not emotional or creative, or have deep insights or thoughts. I like doing things with perspective,” Han said.
Lindroth hopes Ambrocio and Han will inspire future students to enter the competition. “I’m going to push (more students) to (enter) next year,” he said.
