Published On: January 17th, 2016By Leticia Fehling

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Announces Aldine ISD 2016 School Art District Contest Winners

For more than 50 years, the Show has been supporting youth and art education.

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María Zavala’s “Stockyard” piece won Best of Show in the High School Division. She attends Nimitz HS.

[dropcap color=”#888″ type=”square”]R[/dropcap]odeoHouston doesn’t start until March 1. But [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo folks are already busy. The Show’s School Art Committee is visiting districts to judge student artwork.

Each entry receives a red, white, blue or Finalist ribbon. The contest then narrows down to the Finalist recipients. From here, the committee selects the Best of Show, Gold Medal and Special Merit awards. Judges select winners for each class: elementary, junior high and high school.

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“One, Two, Three Bluebonnets” by Torian Lewis

All work by high school participants is eligible for the Show’s School Art Auction at NRG Park.

Aldine ISD students did not disappoint. Prekindergarten students to high school seniors created thousands of western-themed artworks. Of these, 620 artworks placed in the District Contest held Jan. 13 at the M.O. Campbell Educational Center.

This marks the 46th year that district students take part in the HLSR program.

The HLSR School Art Committee selected eight AISD students to advance. The Best of Show and Gold Medal winners will compete with others across the area. They will vie for scholarships in the Show’s School Art contest.

Dr. Michaelann Kelley could not be more proud of the work and participation of students and schools. Kelley is program director of fine arts.

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“Boot Kitty” by Jonathan Perales

“There are several things I am excited about this year,” said Kelley. “The work that prekindergarten submitted is amazing. This was the first year we had prekindergarten students take part. We also saw an increase of 25 percent this year in work that placed. I am proud of the work are students are producing and the talent of our art educators.“

At a later date, Rodeo attendees will be able to view the Best of Show, Gold Medal and Special Merit artworks. In the past, the art exhibition takes place in the Hayloft Gallery located in the NRG Park complex.

The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo will hold an Awards Ceremony on March 5 at 9 a.m. at NRG.