Tuesday, June 6, 2006                                                                             Printable Version (PDF)

Sacramento, CA - Congresswoman Doris O. Matsui (CA-5) announced that Hau Nguyen from Florin High School was selected as the winner of the 25th Annual Congressional Art Competition for the 5th Congressional District.  The announcement was made during an exhibit at The Art Foundry, which showcased the works by nearly 50 students.  Hau Nguyen from Florin High School was awarded first place for his untitled pencil-work piece. The Congresswoman also awarded 2nd and 3rd place to Karen Angel and Anneliese Salgado, respectively.  Students from Sacramento-area high schools were invited to submit their works. On June 28th a gala will take place at the U.S. Capitol with winners representing the other Congressional Districts from across the United States.

Click here to view the Congressional Art Competition Photo Gallery

“I am truly pleased to be able to showcase the artistic talent of Sacramento’s students.  Each piece demonstrates the creative talents and caliber of our students.    This event is also wonderful, because it encourages young people to participate in the arts, which can have such a positive impact on a student’s future successes,” said Congresswoman Matsui.  “The judges’ decision was a difficult one I’m sure, but the piece by Hau Nguyen was a truly unique piece. The originality and design of this work of art is what makes it so wonderful”

The Congresswoman also announced that Karen Angel of Sacramento High School was awarded second place with her watercolor piece, “My Mothers Work”, and Anneliese Salgado of Sheldon High School was awarded third place for her mixed media work “The Road to Greatness.”

In addition to having their artwork on display in the Cannon Tunnel of the U.S. Capitol Building for the year, the winner receives three roundtrip airline tickets to Washington D.C., and hotel accommodations for themselves and their family from Southwest Airlines and the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission. The second and third place winners will both receive gift certificates to the University Art Store.

Six members of the local arts community served as judges, including Muriel Johnson, Executive Director of the California Arts Council, Kerri Warner of the Sacramento Ballet, Paulette Hennum of the California Indian Heritage Canter, Adam Gottlieb of the California Energy Commission, and Lisa Nava of Downtown Resources.

In a change from past competitions there was no general theme for this year’s competition.  This allowed students to submit various pieces and they were judged by their originality, creativity, overall composition and design.  Each school was able to submit up to seven entries for the competition.  Further information can be found at http://matsui.house.gov.