Congressman Paul Tonko announced that Shaker High School Senior Mitchell Aragona is the winner of the 2013 Congressional Art Competition for the 20^th Congressional District. His digital photograph of the back of a computer tower, titled “Walk Down Memory Lane,” was judged to be the best out of 40 entries from 19 local school districts.  The artwork was displayed during a reception Monday evening at the Arts Center of the Capital Region in Troy.

Mitchell’s work will be displayed at the U.S. Capitol for the duration of the year alongside the winning entries from other Congressional districts nationwide.

The first runner up was Katelyn Angeliu, a senior from Shenendehowa High School. Two students were given an honorable mention for their work: Taylor West from the Albany Academy and Kirsten Geracitano of Maple Hill High School.

“Congratulations to Mitchell for his outstanding work, and to all the students who took part in the competition,” said Congressman Tonko. “Creative expression through the arts is an important part of the learning process and allows students to exercise their imagination. I am proud to see so many wonderful submissions and to see this competition continue to grow over the years.”

The artwork was judged by two local arts professionals who donated their time to the project. The judges were Sara Boylen and Andrea Hersh.

As a member of the bipartisan Congressional Arts Caucus, Congressman Tonko continues to work with his colleagues to provide robust federal funding for the arts, including the National Endowments for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Institute for Museums and Library Services, and the Department of Education’s Arts in Education Program.

The Congressional Art Competition started in 1982 as an opportunity for members of Congress to encourage and recognize the artistic talents of their young constituents. This marks the fourth year Congressman Tonko has hosted a reception for the event. More than 650,000 high school students have participated in the nationwide competition.

Photos of last evening’s reception can be found here: http://bit.ly/TonkoArt2013

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