So You Want To Be an Artist? The National Gallery of Canada announces the winners of its cross-Canada art contest for teens

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OTTAWA, June 20, 2013 /CNW/ - The panel of judges has selected this year's winners of So You Want To Be an Artist?, the National Gallery of Canada (NGC)'s cross-Canada contest for teens. First place goes to Alyssa Tang (Markham, ON) for her artwork My Grandma; second place goes to Ling Ke (Vancouver, BC) for Drowning; and third place goes to Priscilla Tremblay (Québec City, QC) for Masked child playing in Trastevere. An honourable mention was also given to Jin Cheng (Toronto, ON) for Alumuna.

Open to teens aged 16 to 19, the third edition of the NGC's annual contest So You Want To Be an Artist? received entries from 203 teenagers across the country. To determine the 12 finalists, participants invited members of the public to vote for their artwork online. Over 25,000 votes were cast. The contest site received a total of 151,412 visitors, a 14% increase from last year.

The 12 entries with the most votes, including the three winning entries, will be displayed at the Gallery until the end of July on the Artissimo Gallery wall, just outside the Special Exhibition galleries, in the concourse leading to the Contemporary Art galleries. The nine other finalists are: Shaza Ali (North York, ON), Medea Rasheed (Waterloo, ON), Christian Amiel Miranda (Winnipeg, MB), Andy Liao (Surrey, ON), William Barthe (Québec City, QC), Megan Wang (Kanada, ON), Norvan Saquiped (North Vancouver, BC), and Kate Pellerin (Hannon, ON).

The panel of judges evaluated finalists' artworks based on the following criteria: clarity of theme and message; originality and imaginativeness; and thought and feeling provoked in the viewer. The panel was made up of the following judges: artist Mélanie Authier from Ottawa; La Presse visual arts journalist Éric Clément from Montréal; artist, curator, and Akimbo social media director James Fowler from Toronto; professor and artist Landon Mackenzie from Vancouver; and Rhiannon Vogl, NGC curatorial assistant, Contemporary Art.

"It's inspiring, each year of the contest, to gain insight into how Canadian teens feel and what they care about. Family, friends, places and social issues are interpreted in unique and exciting ways, showcasing the teens' thoughtfulness and creativity. It's a pleasure and an honour for the Gallery to play a small part in bringing some of that energy and expression to a wider audience. We wish all the teens well on their creative journeys," said Megan Richardson, Chief, Education and Public Programs at the NGC.

First-place winner Alyssa Tang will spend a day at the NGC learning about careers in visual arts and having her portfolio reviewed by an NGC expert, and she will also receive a $500 gift certificate for art supplies. Ling Ke from Vancouver will receive a $1,000 gift certificate for art supplies; Priscilla Tremblay will receive a $500 gift certificate, also for art supplies.

The Gallery thanks its sponsors
The NGC thanks the University of Ottawa's Faculty of Arts for its generosity towards the three winners who will be receiving gift certificates for art supplies.

About the National Gallery of Canada 
The National Gallery of Canada is home to the most important collections of historical and contemporary Canadian art. The Gallery also maintains Canada's premier collection of European Art from the 14th to the 21st century, as well as important works of American, Asian and Indigenous Art and renowned international collections of prints, drawings and photographs. Created in 1880, the National Gallery of Canada has played a key role in Canadian culture for well over a century. Among its principal missions is to increase access to excellent works of art for all Canadians. To do so, it maintains an extensive touring art exhibition programme. For more information: www.gallery.ca

SOURCE: National Gallery of Canada