Concord Student Named Eleventh District Congressional Art Competition Winner

Walnut Creek, CA – Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11) announced that Concord High School junior, Trinh Nguyen, is the winner of the 2017 Congressional Art Competition for California's 11^th Congressional District. Her acrylic painting on canvas entitled "Bullies" will be displayed in the United States Capitol. The art competition is a juried art show open to all high school students who are residents of California's 11^th Congressional District.

"Congratulations to Trinh and all of the students who participated in this year's competition. I am truly inspired by the gifted young artists in our community. I applaud each of the talented students for their thoughtful and creative entries, and I look forward to seeing the artwork displayed," said Congressman DeSaulnier.

The runners-up, whose artwork will be showcased in Congressman DeSaulnier's offices are: Yoon-Ju Kim's piece entitled "Just a Small Hug" from Las Lomas High School and Judith Valencia's piece entitled "Toughen Up and Be a Woman" from Richmond High School.

67 works of art were submitted from nine different high schools throughout California's 11^th Congressional District. The Awards ceremony was held at Congressman DeSaulnier's Walnut Creek district office and the winning pieces were selected by the following judges:

• Michelle Krup, Diablo Valley College Art and Photography Department Instructor
• Donna Fenstermaker, Contra Costa College Professor of Drawing and Composition
• Rebecca Talley, Los Medanos Adjunct Professor of Fine Arts & Graphic Communications

The winning piece from the 11^th Congressional District, along with winning artwork from all 50 states, will be displayed in the United States Capitol Building for the next year. This summer, the winner and a guest will visit Washington, DC for a national reception honoring winners from across the country to celebrate the opening of the Capitol Exhibition. Since 1982, over 650,000 high school students from around the nation have participated in the Congressional Art Competition, which has allowed Members of Congress to acknowledge the artistic talents of their young constituents.

Photo caption: Congressman Mark DeSaulnier and 2017 Congressional Art Competition winner Trinh Nguyen from Concord.