Celebrate the West is a regional art competition hosted by the Western Governors' Association that challenges high school students to create works inspired by their state. See their artwork here.
The annual competition, now in its ninth year, challenges high school students to create original works inspired by their state. Students are encouraged to think about what the West means to them, what it means to call the West home, what they learned about its complex past, and what they imagine its future may look like.
WGA's panel of art experts selected one finalist from each state and territory in WGA's footprint, which you can view in the slideshow below. Overall winners will be announced on May 10.
The People's Choice Award invites members of the public to vote for their favorite piece from the list of this year's state and territory winners. The winning piece will be displayed at the Annual Meeting of the Western Governors' Foundation in June. Cast your vote here.
Christine Ogsbury: Christine Ogsbury founded Celebrate the West in 2015 with her husband, former Executive Director of WGA and current President of the Western Governors’ Foundation, Jim Ogsbury. She was recently highlighted in a special podcast episode of Out West, the official podcast of the Western Governors’ Association, where she shares her inspiration behind starting Celebrate the West, and shares some of her favorite memories from the program. Click here to listen. Christine is a graduate of Arizona State University, and has a background as a corporate paralegal. SHe is currently enjoying retired life in Maui.
Sharon Rouse: Sharon Rouse is a long-time docent at the Denver Art Museum and a leader on the board of Colorado Art Awards, a part of Scholastic Art and Writing national program. Throughout her Visual Art education career in public and private schools, she established working programs for students that inspired and cultivated their talents and appreciation of the arts. Upon retirement, she continued to teach the Visual Arts as an Art Education Student Supervisor for Metro State University.
Mark Salinas: Mark Salinas is the Public Art Program Manager for the City of Berkeley, California and is responsible for the municipal development and implementation of public art policies, procedures, and programming. A strong believer in transparent and inclusive practices, he created The First Lady Presents in 2021, an online arts education initiative promoting the visibility of artists from non-dominant communities in Nevada. Mark is also a recipient of the 2019 Nevada Humanities Rising Star Award and the 2022 Nevada Governor’s Point of Light Award.
Toby Zikmund: Toby Zikmund was selected to participate in the prestigious Western Governors’ Leadership Institute as a North Dakota State Delegate in 2023. Apart from being recognized by our Governors as a rising young leader, Toby has his Bachelor of Fine Arts with an emphasis on painting and is an artist himself. He is currently living in France as part of the Teaching Assistant Program in France (TAPIF).
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