Prince Frederick, MD — Sydney Gleeson, a talented student from Calvert Elementary School, has emerged victorious in Artsonia’s Artist of the Week contest. The competition, held on Artsonia.com, which houses the world’s largest collection of student art portfolios, showcased over 100 million pieces of student artwork.
Gleeson’s captivating artwork titled “Dragon Eye Drawing” garnered nearly 2 thousand online votes, solidifying her position as the deserving winner of the prestigious title. When asked about her artistic pursuits, Gleeson expressed her fondness for art, stating, “I find art to be relaxing, and it is fun to do.”
The news of her victory left Gleeson feeling “surprised, very happy, and excited.” Kristina Gray, Gleeson’s teacher, shared in the excitement, having dedicated over 3 years to teaching art. Gray’s passion for art and her desire to share it with each generation have made her an invaluable mentor for students like Gleeson. She delights in exploring new and enjoyable methods of creating art and encouraging self-expression through the creative process.
Gray is among the numerous art teachers who utilize Artsonia as a platform to showcase their students’ artwork, manage their art rooms, access crowd-sourced lesson plans, and raise funds for their classrooms. Artsonia enables family and friends of student artists to create and purchase custom keepsakes featuring the student’s art, while also contributing 20 percent of the revenue back to the local art classroom.
Artsonia introduced the Artist of the Week contest 15 years ago to motivate teachers to submit student artwork and engage the school and community in voting for and recognizing students’ creative achievements. Each week, Artsonia selects 12 random submissions from four different age groups (PreK-3, 4-6, 7-9, 10-12) from the previous week’s artwork. The public is given several days to vote before the winner is announced.
Gray expressed her delight at having her students’ artistic achievements recognized, hoping that this recognition would further inspire them to pursue their artistic aspirations. Blick Art Materials, a generous contributor, awards a $100 gift certificate to the winning school and a $50 gift certificate to the individual student artist.
Jim Meyers, CEO and co-founder of Artsonia, emphasized the company’s mission of bringing communities together to celebrate children’s artistic expressions. He described the Artist of the Week contest as a perfect opportunity to engage local schools, families, and friends in the process of creating, recognizing, and cherishing student art.
To learn more about Artsonia and its initiatives, please visit artsonia.com.