2024 Student Art Showcase

Get featured among the most creative high school students in Connecticut.

The theme is “Our Story”. We hope to engage students from different backgrounds and highlight a collection of unique experiences through the lens of art. We encourage students to express their unique identity through their work. The exhibit will showcase young creative talent and promote a broader conversation about community. Overall, the exhibit will reveal a representation of many voices and contributions of students through artistic excellence.

Rules

• WCSU is responsible for work only while they are on the premise of the SVPA. CAWCT and WCSU reserve the right to photographic reproduction of the works in the exhibition for publicity and promotional purposes. WCSU and CAWCT do not discriminate with regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, or national origin.

• No AI-generated Art

• ORIGINALITY POLICY: We kindly remind all participants that originality is a fundamental requirement for all submissions to the Student Art Showcase. Your work should be a product of your own creative ideas and not a mere copy of someone else’s work. By entering your work, you confirm that you are the rightful creator and that it has not been plagiarized from any other source, whether it be an individual, business, school, or organization. Any work found to infringe upon someone’s intellectual property rights will be automatically disqualified. It is your responsibility, not the Cultural Alliance nor WCSU to obtain any necessary permissions or releases from individuals or for any locations or properties depicted in your submission.

Recognitions

By category – Works will be selected for 1st, 2nd, 3rd place

Overall – Works across all mediums will be selected for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place

Eligibility

• Open to students in grades 9-12 attending public high school and home school in Connecticut.
• See list of accepted categories.
• All works must be original and completed within the last year. All works must be available through the entire run of the show. Do not submit works for the jury that might be sold before or shown elsewhere during the WCSU STUDENT ART SHOWCASE show time frame.

Categories 

Drawing and Illustration

Drawings include renderings made by an instrument on a surface and include realistic or abstract imagery. Illustrations are works that graphically depict a concept. Pencil, charcoal, pastel, crayon, scratchboard, marker, etc.  

• No AI-generated art. 
• Drawings copied from published photographs, the internet or existing works should not be submitted and will be disqualified.
• Animated .gif files will not be accepted. 

3D Small works 

• Wire, Metal, Wood, Plaster accepted.
• Handcrafted ceramics and hand-made clay or porcelain (no molds or greenware).  
• Unfired ceramics and oil-based clay works will not be accepted. 

Painting

Art created by applying pigment to a 2D surface. Oil, acrylic, gouache, watercolor, ink, or spray paint applied on canvas, board, paper, or other flat surfaces.  

• No AI-generated art. 
• Paintings copied from published photographs, the internet, or existing works should not be submitted and will be disqualified. 

Photography

Analog or digital cameras. Black and white, color, photograms or other experimental photos. Each work submitted to the photography category should be a distinct image that presents a unique artistic vision.  

• Editing software is acceptable to use for minor touch-ups and image correction in a manner that replicates traditional darkroom techniques (cropping, dodging, burning, adjusting brightness, contrast, color balance, etc.). 
• No AI-generated art. 
• Works that are digitally collaged, cloned, layered, merged, distorted, or heavily manipulated with computer software will not be accepted. 

Size Limitations 

• Two-dimensional works, when displayed, cannot exceed 60” in height or width, including frame.  
• Three-dimensional works cannot exceed 36″ in height or width. 

If you need more information e-mail us Robeaul@wcsu.edu

Submission Guidelines 

• All entries are submitted online only
• Parent email and contact information is required to complete the application. 
• Each student is allowed one submission and up to three (3) art entries. 
• Each work must be represented by only one image (no detail views or duplicates).  

Students must be available to attend the opening reception for the Student Art Showcase.

Accepted Works 

Works must be delivered on April 27, 2024, to the School of Visual and Performing Arts.  If other arrangements need to be made, please contact the gallery by Robeaul@wcsu.edu. 

About Western CT State University School of Visual and Performing Arts 

The Art major at WCSU provides challenging visual arts training within the context of a liberal arts education. This approach infuses in students a broad, diverse range of knowledge and experience along with the ability to think critically and analytically. The Gallery at The School of Visual & Performing Arts serves as a venue for both professional and student exhibitions, while the Visiting Artist Lecture Series features an impressive array of practitioners. Bus trips provide students the opportunity to visit galleries and museums each semester in the surrounding area, including Manhattan.