Congressional Art Competition
2025 Congressional Art Competition winner: "The Old Home Place" by Alyssa Rager
Submissions for the 2026 Congressional Art Competition are open until April 26th, 2026 at 5 PM CT.
2026 Theme – America 250: Kansas Edition
We invite Big First students to use their creative talents to create a piece of artwork that reflects the patriotic Kansas values from the Big First district, paired with the celebration of America’s semiquincentennial celebration of 250 years.
Overview:
Each spring, a nationwide high school arts competition is sponsored by the Members of the U.S. House of Representatives. The Congressional Art Competition is an opportunity to recognize and encourage artistic talent in the nation, as well as in our Congressional District.
The competition is open to all high school students in our District. The winning artwork of our district's competition will be displayed for one year in the U.S. Capitol. The exhibit in Washington will include the winning artwork from all participating districts from around the country. The winning artwork is also featured on House.gov's Congressional Art Competition page.
Congressional Art Competition rules:
Artwork entered in the contest may be up to 26 inches high, 26 inches wide, and 4 inches deep. If your artwork is selected as the winning piece, it must arrive framed and must still measure no larger than the above maximum dimensions. No framed piece should weigh more than 15 pounds.
- Paintings - including oil, acrylics, and watercolor
- Drawings - including pastels, colored pencil, pencil, charcoal, ink, and markers (It is recommended that charcoal and pastel drawings be fixed.)
- Collages - must be two dimensional
- Prints - including lithographs, silkscreen, and block prints
- Mixed Media - use of more than two mediums such as pencil, ink, watercolor, etc.
- Computer-generated art
- Photography
Click here to see the full rules and regulations for students and teachers.
How to Enter:
Must be a High School student. Students must reside or go to school in the First District of Kansas.
To enter the competition, email the following to john.walker1@mail.house.gov before April 26th, 2026 at 5 PM CT:
- A scanned copy of the student release form
- A high-resolution photo of your art piece