Amo Announces 2026 Congressional Art Competition

PROVIDENCE, RI - TODAY, Congressman Gabe Amo (D-RI) announced that submissions are now open for the 2026 Congressional Art Competition.

High school students who live in Rhode Island's First Congressional District are invited to submit original artwork to Congressman Amo's office by Friday, April 17th, at 5:00 PM.

The winning piece will be displayed in the United States Capitol for one year as part of an exhibit that includes artwork from winners representing Congressional Districts across the country.

"I'm excited to kick off the 2026 Congressional Art Competition," said Congressman Gabe Amo (D-RI). "This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the creativity and talent of students across Rhode Island's First Congressional District. I can't wait to see the inspiring work our young artists will share."

Requirements

Artwork entered in the contest may be up to 26 inches by 26 inches (including the frame) and may be up to 4 inches in depth. The artwork may be:

• Paintings, including oil, acrylics, and watercolor
• Drawings, including pastels, colored pencil, pencil, charcoal, ink, and markers
• Collage (must be two-dimensional)
• Prints, including lithographs, silkscreen, and block prints
• Mixed-media using more than two mediums, such as pencil, ink, watercolor, etc.
• Computer-generated art
• Photographs
• All entries must be original in concept, design, and execution

Find rules of entry and submit your application here. A panel of local judges will review the works submitted.

For more information, call our Rhode Island office at (401) 729-5600 or contact Erlinda Castro at [email protected].

Background

Each spring, the Congressional Institute, a non-partisan organization that supports the U.S House of Representatives, sponsors a nationwide high-school arts competition with a winner selected to represent each Congressional District. Since 1982, more than 650,000 students have participated.

The competition is open to high-school students in the 19 municipalities that comprise Rhode Island's First Congressional District. Past winners include Blake Harris from Providence and Vivian Wen from Barrington.

###