NEW ORLEANS (press release) – Submissions for the annual Rau for Art Foundation 2024/2025 Scholarship Competition, and the chance for a student in our area to win up to $7,000 and a trip to Italy, are open.
Sophomores, juniors and seniors who attend local schools in Orleans, Jefferson, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Tammany, and St. Charles parishes may submit original artwork inspired by this year’s theme, Inanimate Inspirations. Submissions close on Feb. 3, 2025 and applicants may Click here to enter.
The 10 finalists’ artworks will be exhibited at the M.S. Rau gallery. Four of the finalists, selected by a panel of rotating guest judges, will be granted college scholarship funds and the first-place winner is also invited to study art in Italy.
The 2024/2025 Rau for Art Scholarship Prizes:
- First Place: $7000 (with the option to study in Italy) + $500 to your high school’s art department
- Second Place: $3000
- Third Place: $1500
- Fourth Place: $1000
M.S. Rau shared that year’s theme was inspired by artists like Andy Warhol, who looked at everyday objects like soup cans and Brillo pads and saw exciting possibilities, and Georgia O’Keeffe, who spent years painting different flowers, bringing them to life with her unique style.
Students are asked to create a two-dimensional piece of artwork that explores the themes of a still life but adds either a personal twist or feeling to the traditional form. Rather than a straightforward depiction of objects, they are asked to create a piece that infuses these inanimate subjects with a rich, emotional narrative. Each RFA entry will be judged on the following criteria: technical ability and execution, originality, and their interpretation of the theme.
