Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The Visual Arts Commission, in association with the Ministry of Education (MOE), launched the "Artists of Tomorrow" competition for school students with the goal of spreading the culture of visual arts and discovering the artistic skills of students.

The contest is focusing on three main arts fields: Drawing and Painting, Sculpture, and Photography, as part of the authority’s community programs to develop the artistic taste of students and motivate them to unleash their imaginations to create pieces of art.

The competition tracks are divided into four categories based on their academic level: an elementary school track for students in grades one through three, and another one for students in grades four through six, and an intermediate track and a high school one.

According to the MOC website, the early elementary grades challenge is focused on designing an imaginary animal as it states: “Imagine yourself building an entire world, containing plants and animals from your imagination. Create for us an example of a fictional/realistic animal that lives in this world.”

Whilst the upper elementary task is choosing a special person in their lives and inventing superpowers for them: “Do you have favourite characters in your life? Design a character from your life or your imagination with imaginary superpowers using your creativity.”

The intermediate challenge is more sophisticated. It asks children to create a complete world: “Use your creativity to design your own world as you imagine it. This world belongs to you, and you have the absolute freedom to include whatever elements and ideas you want.”

Finally, the high school mission is more geared into the future: “We are living in an era of speed and transformation. We are witnessing things that we have never seen before. All things are subject to development and change. Use your creativity and imagination to envision your city in 2060.”

The competition includes a set of in-kind and intangible prizes for the winning teachers and students, in addition to motivating supervisors to encourage students to participate.

The registration stage is from Feb. 13 to March 31, followed by an evaluation stage from Apr. 1st to Apr. 7th, and the announcements of winners will be anytime from Apr. 9th and 21st of Apr, according to the MOC website.

The CEO of the Visual Arts Authority, Dina Amin, confirmed the authority’s commitment to supporting, developing, and empowering the artistic movement by embracing and nurturing local artistic talent and investing their creative energies, through a comprehensive strategy that includes various programs and initiatives, to create an incubating and appealing environment for the creativity of artists and practitioners of the art scene within the Kingdom and to support their talents.

For his part, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education for General Education, Dr. Muhammad Al-Meqbel, said: "These programs and projects contribute to enhancing the artistic values and aesthetic taste of students and encourage them to think, innovate and be creative."

The Commission aims from the “Artists of Tomorrow” competition to nurture artistic talents and support the production and display of Saudi artwork in all its forms. It also seeks to be a regional hub for visual arts and encourage the local community to appreciate and celebrate art.