YAC 2012 Results Announcement

It is my honor and pleasure to present to you the results of the Fourth Annual Young Artists Contest (June 16, 2012 ~ August 15, 2012).  A total of 165 entries was submitted by artists aged 13 to 17, which is 133 less than last year.  As you all know, this is a traditional media contest, and just like in the past, we were pleasantly surprised by the outstanding skills, original visions, and overall artistic maturity of many of the submissions.  Please give yourselves a round of applause for bravely taking a step to enter your work into this competitive event, and more importantly, for continuing to be an artist and expressing yourself through your art.

First, I'd like to extend my sincere thanks to my co-judges for volunteering to do the time-consuming and truly difficult task of judging this big event.



The first four judges have been with me on this contest many years, and I am most grateful for their continued support and help each summer.  And I am most pleased to have the 'graduates' of the YAC, serving as judges in this year's event  -- the two wonderful young ladies at the end of the list above.
Thank you again for your commitment.  This year's event went smoothly, thanks to your timely actions all through the judging phases.

I'd also like to express my appreciation for the sponsors/prize donors of the contest.  I can never express enough just how much your generosity makes this contest fun and exciting.  This year's event was able to offer a wide variety of prizes.  Thank you all for your support of young artists through this event!



CATEGORY 1 (age 13)

There were 23 pieces entered into this category.  7 pieces (30%) were selected to advance to the final round of judging for having earned the minimum of 2 judges' votes during the first round of judging.

Third Place
:thumb315323357: "care package" by

Second Place
:thumb316342019: "What If..." by

And the First Place was won by...
"Cat Kiss" by (formerly and originally entered into YAC as zephyo)

We have one Honorable Mention.
"Dragon of Color" by

Congratulations to the winners and an honoree.


CATEGORY 2 (ages 14 & 15)

There were 50 pieces entered into this category.  14 pieces (28%) were selected to advance to the final round of judging for having earned the minimum of 2 judges' votes during the first round of judging.

Third Place
:thumb265242015: "The Fall" by

Second Place
"Prideful Flare" by

And the winner of the First Place is...
:thumb315709729: "Past Midnight" by

We have two Honorable Mentions in this category.
"Creator of Crystal Cave" by and
:thumb318226863: "Bubo Bubo Turcomanus" by

Congratulations to the winners and honorees!


CATEGORY 3 (ages 16 & 17)

Just like all previous years, we received the highest number of submissions into this category.  There was a total of 92 entries received.  28 pieces (30%) earned the minimum requirement of 2 judges' votes to advance to the final round.

Third Place
"SURREAL: Juicy flow." by

Second Place
:thumb299087491: "Josh" by

And the First Place was won by...
:thumb290616672: "Traveler" by

We have four Honorable Mentions in this category.
"Man is an animal" by
"Apostrophe to the Ocean" by
"Not so Lonely" by
:thumb278251988: "Leisure as Luxury" by

Congratulations to all winners and honorees!

BEST OF SHOW YAC 2012, chosen from the three First Place winners of the contest, receiving 5 out of 7 judge's nods with the highest total points earned (60.50 out of 70.00 possible), is awarded to...

:thumb290616672: "Traveler" by

CONGRATULATIONS on your outstanding piece!  Well deserved!



Now we have the Judge's Choice Awards, selected by each of our judges for his/her own reasons.

Judge has awarded her Judge's Choice Award to
  "Bathsalts" by for "very creative use of colorful splatters".

Judge has awarded her Judge's Choice Award to
:thumb321378459: "I breathe paint fumes and creativity" by for "great painting skills, and well-proportioned and original take on a self-portrait".

Judge has awarded her Judge's Choice Award to
"Morning's Primeval Peach" by for "a wonderful rich colored pencil painting".

Judge has awarded her Judge's Choice Award to
"Apostrophe to the Ocean" by for "a high level of technical skill and the ability to synthesize prose and imagery".

Judge has awarded her Judge's Choice Award to
"Deterioration of the Enigmatic" by for "best piece to get as a tattoo".

Judge has awarded her Judge's Choice Award to
"Ephemeral" by for "the most beautiful bloom".

Judge has awarded his Judge's Choice Award to
:thumb290956951: "Dryad" by for "the wonderful flow and details".

Congratulations awardees!  

All winners, honorees, and awardees will receive personalized award certificate with their dA username, title of the award, and title of the artwork.

*This year's YAC award certificates feature the beautiful artwork of fellow young artist (She is one of the winners of this year's event.) and one of the winners of last year's YAC, .

Individual sponsors will be in touch with the winners regarding their prizes within the next few days.  Congratulations to all.  And thank you all for participating with wonderful entries!!

And here's some words from one of our judges, , on this year's YAC.

"This is a contest that I absolutely love. Every year the entries blow me away, and this year is no exception. From wonderfully dynamic portraits to fantastically surreal dreamscapes, the artists who have entered this year really seem to have done it all. Being able to judge a contest like this is so much fun because of the diversity in subject matter and style, but what I like most is just seeing the awesome collection of work that is created. I really enjoyed the interesting takes on pieces that would otherwise be considered quite traditional (still lifes, portraits, landscapes). It's the creativity and inspired thought put into a lot of these pieces that make them stand out and grab the eye, and as an artist and art appreciator, I really go for that kind of thing. I look forward to seeing more great work from all of you next year!"

Thank you all for participating in YAC 2012 with your original artwork.  It's wonderful to see so many of you are creating amazing pieces with the skill and passion, using various traditional media.   I hope to bring you the Fifth Annual Young Artists Contest next summer, so watch for the announcement in late spring 2013 at the group.  The contest period will be mid-June through August 15th.  If you still qualify age-wise, we'd love to see you all again!!

Remember to show some love to the winners!!   Thank you!

Till the next YAC, happy drawing and painting, everyone!

Disclaimer:  All the winners of YAC 2012 were contacted by the administration and notified of their prizes immediately upon the announcement of results.  Prizes (both "tangible" such as prints, and "online" such as subscriptions) are considered UNCLAIMED AND EXPIRED after 30 days if no response was received to claim them.  No further action is required of the sponsors/prize donors in such cases.