With 26 students winning one or more awards, various students were announced winners of the 92nd annual Art and Writing Scholastic Competition, selected by volunteers from Alliance Young Artists and Writers, a nonprofit organization. The competition, which allows teenagers to submit either writing pieces or art works on a subject of their own choosing. Various awards are given to the winners, ranging from the first place award, the Gold Key, to the Honorable Mention Award.

“I am not surprised by how many students received the awards because our students are very talented in art, and probably writing too,” said Jin Shin Ekin, art teacher. “I think that this competition is a good opportunity to [boost] students’ confidence levels and to become more valued as an artist from others. They will be recognized for their artistic skills, even outside of SIS.”

One of the art award recipients who received help from Ms. Ekin, Yejee Yoon (12), submitted in her portfolio and one additional art piece and received awards for all twelve of her work. Some of her artworks included “The Dive,” “The Country Market Scene,” and “Nostalgia.”

“Last year I only got one award. I was really sad because I tried really hard and I couldn’t get as many as I wanted,” Yejee said. “I think the awards were a motivation for me to draw even better this year and my skills improved a lot. Although I drew my artworks mostly for my portfolio, I still applied for the competition so I could remind myself about my growth as an artist.”

As the objective of the competition is to give young artists an opportunity to be recognized for their creative achievements, winners get an opportunity to exhibit their artwork in the Art.Write.Now exhibition across the world and possibly receive a scholarship from a college or university. Top Award recipients also receive 250,000 dollars of prize money. Eugenie Lee (11) was the only SIS student who received two Silver Key awards in the writing portion.

“I think that participating in a writing contest is an important factor for anyone if he or she is really interested in pursuing a writing career,” Eugenie said. “I wrote about a famous revolutionary and a ballet choreographer, Pina Bauch, and I learned more about the root of modern day art. I decided to participate in the competition to share my true passion for writing articles.”