Summer Salute to Service Artwork Contest

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For additional press questions, please contact Tamara Brown, Director of Marketing and Communications, at tbrown@nationalvmm.org.

Summer Salute to Service Artwork Contest

This year, the National Veterans Memorial and Museum (NVMM) is exploring the theme of connection.

Artistic expression is often used by Veterans and non-Veterans alike to process thoughts and feelings and share a personal narrative. We want you to share your connection to the Veteran experience through your own artwork. Think: What is my connection to the Veteran experience?

Request for Artwork: In collaboration with the Delaware County Veterans Service Office (Ohio), we are requesting submissions for two-dimensional (2-D) art from all ages in four categories. Artists may submit one image of 2-D art for consideration. All 2-D mediums are welcome and should fit in one of the sizes listed below (canvas will not be accepted).

About the National Veterans Memorial and Museum

The National Veterans Memorial and Museum takes visitors on a narrative journey telling individual stories and sharing experiences of Veterans from all military branches throughout history. The National Veterans Memorial and Museum pays tribute to the sacrifices of men and women in service and their families. History is presented through a dynamic, participatory experience with photos, letters and personal effects, multi-media presentations, and interactive exhibits. Together, these elements link our national story of service to the larger context of the world. 

Summer Salute to Artwork Contest Partners:

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NVMM Logo, Stacked, Color

NVMM Logo, Aligned, Color

NVMM Logo, Aligned, White

To download the images, please right click on the image and click “Save Image As”

For additional image assets, please reach out to Jennifer Nodjak, Marketing and Communications Manager, at jnodjak@nationalvmm.org.

Summer Salute to Service Artwork Contest

This year, the National Veterans Memorial and Museum (NVMM) is exploring the theme of connection.

Artistic expression is often used by Veterans and non-Veterans alike to process thoughts and feelings and share a personal narrative. We want you to share your connection to the Veteran experience through your own artwork. Think: What is my connection to the Veteran experience?

Request for Artwork: In collaboration with the Delaware County Veterans Service Office (Ohio), we are requesting submissions for two-dimensional (2-D) art from all ages in four categories. Artists may submit one image of 2-D art for consideration. All 2-D mediums are welcome and should fit in one of the sizes listed below (canvas will not be accepted).

A panel of six judges will review each digital submission and determine the three finalists for each category. They will then determine the overall winner for each group.

Meet Your Judges:

Shawn Augustson is a U.S. Army Veteran who discovered art and photography as a form of therapy after serving in Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom. He is a gallery represented artist through Hayley Gallery in New Albany OH. His work has been in the Kurt Vonnegut Museum in Indianapolis, The National Veterans Art Museum in Chicago, The Columbus Museum of Art and the National Veterans Museum and Memorial in Columbus, OH. He volunteers for CreatiVets at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago to help teach and mentor new Veterans entering into the program.

Kristin (Otterson) Cronic is an artist and United States Naval Academy (USNA) graduate. She has a B.S. in Naval Architecture and was commissioned as a Surface Warfare Officer in 2011. She served as a naval officer until 2017, deploying twice on ships.

Kristin pursued an informal art education in her free time. She has dedicated recent years to documenting the midshipman’s journey through painting under the alias “Easel on Stribling,” painting over 150 pieces about USNA. Kristin is the artist behind the National Veterans Memorial and Museum’s current exhibition, A Midshipman’s Journey, on view through November 30, 2023.

She has an M.F.A. in Visual Art from Jacksonville University. She resides in Florida with her husband, Caleb, and their three children.

Adrian Rodriguez is a U.S. Marine Corps Veteran who found a variety of art mediums to assist with his therapy after deploying to Iraq in 2005 in Operation Iraqi Freedom. While attending college for Architecture he found a general passion for art and being creative. This led him to participate in a Veteran Program called CreatiVets in Chicago, Illinois.

It gave him the ability to try new mediums and express his trauma through art. He recently had his work displayed at the National Veterans Museum and Memorial in Columbus, Ohio. He is a resident of the greater Columbus area with his wife Emma and their three children.

Rey Cordero is a U.S. Army Veteran and the County Veteran Service Officer for Delaware County, Ohio. He joined the Army in 1989 and was first assigned to 99th Signal BN. He then was stationed with the 546th Transportation CO. 1st COSCOM 18th ABN Corps out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

While with the unit, Operation Desert Shield/Storm started in August of 1990 and Rey’s unit was the first Transportation Company in theater. Serving eight months in theater he returned to Fort Bragg for other deployments until 1994, when he was reassigned to the 824th QM (ABN). After a year he returned to New York City and was assigned to the 773rd Transportation Co. out of Ft. Totten NY.

Will is a U.S. Army Veteran and currently an Operations Manager at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, where he works with hospital staff to develop, implement and coordinate effective systems to evaluate and improve patient outcomes and quality care within the Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. Before coming to Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Will worked as an operations leader and continuous improvement consultant in multiple Fortune 100 companies.

Prior to his professional career, he served as a Sergeant in the United States Army where he was responsible for leading a communications team through various technical and tactical installation projects, as well as two deployments to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. In 2018, Will was selected as a Presidential Scholar with the George W. Bush Institute’s Stand-To Veteran’s Leadership Initiative, where he worked with leaders across the country to improve Post 9/11 Veteran outcomes.

In 2019 he joined the Board of Directors for CreatiVets, a non-profit organization that used the arts and music to help disabled veterans cope with service-related trauma. In 2020, Will was selected as a Tillman Scholar by the Pat Tillman Foundation based on his work in improving equitable access to healthcare for children in underserved and high needs areas. Will earned his B.A. in Applied Management and Master’s degree in healthcare administration from Ohio University, and is a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality.

Samantha Fouts is the Exhibitions Associate at the National Veterans Memorial and Museum. Ever since she was young, she enjoyed studying history and developed a specific interest in military history. Samantha earned her B.A. in History from Ohio Wesleyan University and her M.A. in Museum Studies from Johns Hopkins University. As an Exhibitions Associate, she researches historic artifacts for use by the Museum’s Exhibition team to share the stories of the men and women who serve our nation.

Sample Social Posts

Facebook/LinkedIn:

This summer, explore your unique connection to the Veteran experience through art!

Individuals of all ages are invited to submit their artwork as a part of the @National Veterans Memorial and Museum’s Salute to Service Summer Artwork Contest. Finalists and winners will be selected by six judges and will get the chance to have their work displayed at the Delaware Country (Ohio) Fair and the National Veterans Memorial and Museum.

Winners will also receive gift cards donated by Cheap Joes Art Stuff and United Art and Education Superstore, a certificate signed by all the judges AND a one-year integrity membership to the Museum.

Twitter: 🖼️🚨 ART CONTEST 🚨🖼️

Individuals of all ages are invited to submit their artwork as a part of @NationalVMM’s Salute to Service Summer Artwork Contest. Finalists & winners will have their work displayed at the Delaware Country (Ohio) Fair and the NVMM.

Instagram: We want to see YOUR artwork this summer!

Individuals of all ages are invited to submit their artwork as a part of the @nationalvmm’s Salute to Service Summer Artwork Contest.

✨ Finalists and winners will be selected by six judges and will get the chance to have their work displayed at the Delaware Country (Ohio) Fair and at the NVMM. ✨

See below for some commonly asked questions about the Summer Salute to Service Artwork Contest and their respective answers!

  • May 20: Contest Begins
  • July 31: Last Day for Submissions
  • August 18: Finalists and Winners Announced

Submissions should fit the following sizes:

  • 8” x 10”
  • 16” x 20”
  • 24” x 36”

Artists will be grouped into four separate categories:

  • Youth (11 and under)
  • Teen (12 – 17)
  • Adult (18+)
  • Veteran/Active-Duty Service Members (with proof of service).

A panel of six judges will review each digital submission and determine the three finalists for each category. They will then determine the overall winner for each group. The finalists will be responsible for sending the original artwork to the NVMM.

Thanks to the support of Battelle, the NVMM will frame the top three finalists in each age group. Artwork from the top three finalists will first be displayed at the Delaware County (Ohio) Fair from September 16 – 23, and then on view at the NVMM from October 2023 – April 2024. Winners will also receive gift cards donated by Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff and United Art & Education Superstore, a certificate signed by all six judges and a one-year Integrity membership to the Museum.

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