The Art Institutes and Americans for the Arts Poster Design Competition Honors 2011 National Winners

PITTSBURGH, June 21, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Ernest Castillo of Las Vegas is the grand prize winner of The Art Institutes and Americans for the Arts Poster Design Competition 2011. Judges chose Castillo's submission, a design depicting an artist's journey to a magical deep-sea environment as he paints the first stroke on a blank canvas, because it best exemplifies the competition theme – "life is better with art in it." Castillo's prize-winning piece tries to show the audience that art inspires, excites and ultimately moves artists and viewers alike.

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(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110621/MM20714 )

As the grand prize winner of the national competition, Castillo earns a full-tuition scholarship to study at The Art Institute of Las Vegas. Additionally, Castillo's work was honored alongside other national competition entries by The Art Institutes, Americans for the Arts and invited members of Congress at a Congressional Reception on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.

Castillo is thrilled to be recognized as the grand prize winner and is looking forward to beginning his studies at The Art Institute of Las Vegas, saying "I can't believe it! Art is my passion, and now I have the opportunity to earn a degree at The Art Institute of Las Vegas – it couldn’t get better."

Adrianna Simmons is the national second place winner. She earns a half-tuition scholarship to study at The Art Institute of Wisconsin. And as the national third place winner, Paulina Zaborny earns a quarter-tuition scholarship to study at The Art Institute of Pittsburgh.

"The talent represented in this year's Poster Design Competition is both impressive and inspiring. We believe it is extremely important to foster and support a passion for art and are thrilled that our incoming students are choosing The Art Institutes as the foundation that will give them the tools to succeed in applied arts careers," said John Mazzoni, President, The Art Institutes.

President and CEO of Americans for the Arts Robert L. Lynch echoed Mazzoni's sentiments, saying, "Americans for the Arts applauds the work of the high school seniors that participated in this year's competition. We are hopeful that this scholarship opportunity continues to encourage students to apply their talents to the creative arts."

Sponsored by The Art Institutes and Americans for the Arts, the Poster Design Competition was created to recognize, encourage and reward young artistic talent at the high school level. High school seniors with an interest in design were eligible to enter the competition to express their visual interpretation of why "life is better with art in it." Students submitted their entries to participating Art Institutes schools, where local competitions were held and winners were selected. These first place winners' entries were then placed into consideration for national judging. A panel of graphic design professionals visited The Art Institutes' website (www.artinstitutes.edu/posterdesign) and scored the 48 entries on a 100-point-value system.

For more information on The Art Institutes and Americans for the Arts Poster Design Competition, visit www.artinstitutes.edu/postercompetition.

About The Art Institutes

The Art Institutes (www.artinstitutes.edu) is a system of more than 45 education institutions located throughout North America. The Art Institutes system is America's Leader in Creative Education providing an important source for design, media arts, fashion and culinary arts professionals. Several institutions included in The Art Institutes system are campuses of South University.

About Americans for the Arts

Americans for the Arts is the leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America. With offices in Washington, D.C. and New York City, it has a record of more than 50 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts. Additional information is available at www.AmericansForTheArts.org.

SOURCE The Art Institutes

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