Each year, SFBBO hosts a Kids Bird Art Contest where we invite children ages 3-17 to spend time outside, observe birds in nature, and record their observations in the form of art and writing. With our renewed mission statement, we wanted participants to help promote a sustainable future for birds. We asked kids to create artwork reflecting a memorable experience they have had with birds in nature, do research about the threats birds face, and write about how people can help birds…
We were impressed by the quality of the submissions and inspired by the stories that kids share! We received entries from all over the world, and our judges loved admiring everyone’s artwork and reading the stories. Seeing that young people are connecting deeply with nature makes us hopeful for the future of birds and their habitats!
Age 3-7 Category Winner:
Ivanka Singh
Steller’s Jay
Our judges were impressed by how Ivanka was able to capture the colors and shape of the Steller’s Jay. They also loved the the intensity of the colors and the textured background.
Age 8-11 Category Winner:
Max Moyle
Brown Creeper
The judges enjoyed how the artistic details were brought to life with all the interesting information Max shared in the text, and they loved that everything was part of the artwork.
Age 12-17 Category Winner:
Audrey Papasin
Great Horned Owl
The judges all agreed that Audrey’s artwork and story were thoroughly detailed and stunning, and they also really liked the overall layout of the piece. Audrey also won last year’s Age 8-11 category, so we were happy to see her enter the contest again this year!
Honorable Mention:
Olivia Chen, Age 3-7 Category
American Avocet
The judges enjoyed the texture and pose of the bird, and they appreciated Olivia’s concrete suggestions to help birds. Olivia also finished 2nd place in last year’s Kids Bird Art Contest in the same age category, so it’s great to see her artwork and storytelling again!
Honorable Mention:
Katherina Gong, Age 8-11 Category
Common Raven
The judges commented on how the story really brought the artwork to life, noting how difficult it can be to illustrate birds that are entirely black.
Honorable Mention:
Angela Wu, Age 8-11 Category
American Robin
The judges thought Angela’s artwork was beautiful, stylistic, and whimsical.
Congratulations to all the winners!
In addition, many of the artists submitted optional photos of themselves holding up their artwork, so we wanted to share a collage highlighting these amazing young artists. We hope everybody who participated in the contest continues to tell stories, create art, and help birds!
If you’d like to support the Kids Bird Art Contest, you can make a donation or contribute prizes for next year!