The Naperville Sister Cities Commission announced the award recipients for the 2019 Young Artists and Authors Showcase (YAAS) on March 15 at a ceremony held at the Naperville Fine Art Center & Gallery. The participants, all students between the ages of 13 and 18 attending Naperville area schools, rose to the challenge of creating an original piece of artwork reflecting the theme, “Global Citizens, Resilient Communities,” a requirement for eligibility.
The competition, an initiative of Sister Cities International (SCI) launched in 1988, is designed to encourage students from around the world to support SCI’s mission of promoting “peace through mutual respect, understanding and cooperation – one individual, one community at a time.”
Samantha Gillham, a junior at Neuqua Valley High School, walked away with the top prize of $250. Her entry, “Love Without Boundaries,” will be submitted to SCI’s competition in Washington D.C. as a contender for the national award. If selected, Gillham’s piece, along the works of four other national and five international finalists, will be included in a traveling exhibition and featured at SCI’s 2019 conference in Houston.
In her artist statement, Gillham explains the motivation behind her submission, a hand-drawn illustration of a volunteer relief group helping victims in the aftermath of a disaster.
“Last year, I heard about the tsunami in Indonesia and the devastation it caused, which was the inspiration for the scene,” Gillham wrote.
Executed on a sepia substrate with muted hues, bursts of color on the attire of the subjects suggest international participation and “emphasize the importance of global community in assisting fellow countries in dire situations.” The theme of resiliency is reinforced by the depiction of “a community that has been struck by disaster, but with the help of people all around the globe, the community can quickly get restored again.”
Followers of the YAAS may remember that Neuqua Valley High School student Morgan Demski was named as one of ten finalists in the 2012 international competition. Hopefuls will have to wait to find out the fate of Naperville’s 2019 entry. SCI will announce the competition results in June.
Students interested in competing in the 2020 YAAS can check out the Sister Cities International website at www.sistercities.org/YAAS for details later this year.
