Camas student art winners announced

Camas Mayor Steve Hogan this week announced the four winners of the city’s “No Smoking in Parks” art design contest. 

The winners include Dorothy Fox Elementary School students Mason Acda and Timmy Xiao, Helen Baller Elementary School student Emily Sue Gay and Skyridge Middle School student Emily Liu. Each winner will receive an official parks’ sign with their winning design as a prize.

The city will incorporate the winning art designs on signs to be placed in Camas’ many parks, trails and open spaces. 

The students took part in Camas’ Parks and Recreation Department’s recent art poster design contest to help promote the city’s policy prohibiting smoking and tobacco use within Camas’ parks, open spaces and trails. 

A total of 21 students submitted designs and the Parks & Recreation Commission chose the top eight designs they believed best illustrated the sign concept. 

The Camas School District then held a vote that included 938 students and parents to narrow the Commission’s top eight designs down to the top four winners. 

CHS students among 2022 regional art show winners

Two Camas High School art students were among those honored on March 16, when the Educational Service District (ESD) 112 held its 2022 Southwest Washington Regional High School Art Show. 

ESD 112 Superintendent Tim Merlino welcomed guests to this year’s virtual art show, hosted on YouTube. Viewers had a chance to see award-winning pieces in addition to hearing from participating artists.

“Art and creative expression are more important this year than ever before,” said Monique Dugaw, ESD 112’s executive director of communications and public information. “Student participants demonstrated exceptional skill and originality in their work, which was heavily influenced by the challenge of another pandemic year.” 

Winners of the Regional Awards, including Camas High School students Trinity Archer and Macx Ong, will compete against entries from around Washington State in the Virtual State Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) Art Show. The Virtual Artwork Gallery will go live on April 29, and the Virtual Awards Ceremony will take place online on May 26.