Be Beautiful Bloomington Youth Art Entries Displayed At City Hall

Be Beautiful Bloomington Youth Art Entries Displayed At City Hall

Date of Record: July 14, 2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 14, 2006

For more information, contact:
Sara E. Ollis, Assistant Deputy Mayor, City of Bloomington, 349-3836

[image:1792,left]Bloomington, IN -- Mayor Mark Kruzan announced today that Be Beautiful Bloomington Youth Art entries will be showcased at City Hall through mid-August. Kruzan announced the competition in early April to help celebrate Be Beautiful Bloomington Month and kickoff the Be Bloomington campaign.

The public is invited to see the entries in the Atrium of City Hall, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and during the Bloomington Community Farmers' Market on Saturdays, 7 a.m. to noon.

"All the entries were well-thought out and creative," Kruzan said. "I'm delighted to see Bloomington's youth describe the pride they have in our community through art."

Youth ages 18 and under throughout Bloomington and Monroe County were encouraged to submit any form of creative expression, including drawings, paintings, colorings, graphic designs, poetry or photographs of what they found to be beautiful in or about Bloomington. More than 100 entries were received for the exhibition.

The City of Bloomington Community Arts Commission (BCAC) appointed a jury to review the submitted artwork and select the winning entries.

The winners are:

• First Place: a poem by Lilly Judge, a sixth grade student at Childs Elementary.
• Second Place: photos by Jordan Barker, a seventh grade student at Batchelor Middle School.
• Third Place: a drawing by Tabitha Feaster, a tenth grader at Bloomington High School South.

Students were asked to include a 50-word or less written description that explains why the student chose the characteristic or element of Bloomington that was depicted in their piece and why the youth finds Bloomington beautiful.

First place winner Lilly Judge's poem is called "Slow Down," and about it she wrote: "My poem is about the loveliest place in Bloomington -- down by the bridge over Jackson Creek in Sherwood Oaks Park. It's full of life and is very magical."

Jordan Barker's second place piece featured the word "Bloomington" with multiple photos. Jordan wrote, "Bloomington may not be the most scenic city, but it has its moments when it couldn't be any more beautiful. I decided to make my project a bunch of little moments in Bloomington, which is known for its redbuds, Cardinals, and the lights around the city hall at Christmas. I included all these things in the word "Bloomington" since they make up our beautiful city. I hope that you find all these things as beautiful as I do."

Tabitha Feaster, third place winner, wrote: "I find diversity the most beautiful aspect of Bloomington. Diversity helps our town become more saturated with cultures from all around the world. Through diversity citizens are taught tolerance and understanding of other societies and people."

Prizes for the winning students include: WonderLab Museum passes, City of Bloomington family pool passes, a John Waldron Arts Center class and Pygmalion's gift certificate, Kerasotes movie passes, Buskirk-Chumley Theater tickets, McDonald's gift certificates, Cheeseburger in Paradise certificates and Be Bloomington T-shirts and magnets. In addition, the BCAC will supply prizes for winners' schools: the first place winner's school will receive $250 for art supplies; second place will receive $150 and third place $100.

Honorable mentions include Rachel Chang, Tom� Fuentes-Rowher, Eliana Silberstein and Allie Hetrick.

For additional information please visit bloomington.in.gov, e-mail [bbbb@bloomington.in.gov|mailto:bbbb@bloomington.in.gov] or call the Be Bloomington hotline at 349-BBBB.

# # #