A local high school student received a high honor when her painting was picked as the winning piece for the 2021 Congressional Art Competition for FL-15.
Leah Baker, a sophomore at Durant High School, said she was shocked when she discovered her piece had won. Titled “Rocket Pup,” the painting was an homage to her dog Rocky who passed away in April. Baker said Rocky was beloved by her family and while they were grieving she wanted to find a way to help ease the pain because the loss “hit them really hard.” While sketching she decided to add a patriotic aspect to the work in honor of her grandfather who served in the U.S. Marine Corps and her father who works for the Sheriff’s Office.
“It was all such a surprise,” Baker said. “I didn’t really expect to win at all. I honestly just submitted it for my art teacher, because we kind of found out about it last minute and I knew it would mean a lot to him if some of us could submit something we were proud of. So I sketched it at school and then went home and worked on it at night. I also, while I made the piece for my family I really wanted to make this for my dad. When they told me I won it wasn’t really real for me. I was so shocked.”
Baker said she always found herself doing little pieces of art growing up and then when she was in middle school she began to channel the outlet into more serious work. Inspired by a close friend, she said she began to delve into the intricacies of perspective and learned to not compare herself to others. In art she found an outlet for her creativity and has happily honed her skill ever since.
When the announcement came that she had won and that Congressman Scott Franklin would be coming to Durant for a ceremony in her honor she said it finally started to sink in that Rocket Pup had actually been selected as the winner. Dr. Alex Rich, executive director of Polk Museum of Art, lead the selection and Franklin reviewed the entries as well. Rich is also the Chair of the Department of Art History and Museum Studies at Florida Southern College and is also Associate Professor of Art History. He holds the George and Dorothy Forsythe Endowed Chair in Art History and Museum Studies.
“The Artistic Discovery contest began in 1982 to provide an opportunity for members of Congress to encourage and recognize the artistic talents of their young constituents,” the news release read. “Since then, over 650,000 high school students have been involved with the nationwide competition. The first-place winner from the 15th Congressional District will have their artwork displayed in the U.S. Capitol for an entire year. The winning artwork is also featured on the House.gov Congressional Art Competition page.”
Winning is an honor Baker said she won’t soon forget. She encouraged students who have thought about entering in the past to trust their gut and submit a piece. She joked that she never had any expectations to win, but had the surprise of her life nonetheless.
“I’m grateful to each of the 19 talented students who submitted artwork for this year’s Congressional Art Competition,” Rep. Franklin said. “I want to thank all the participants for their submissions. Their talent and hard work will enrich our community. I would also like to thank Dr. Alexander Rich, executive director of the Polk Museum of Art, for serving as judge of the competition. Congratulations to Leah and best of luck to all of our contestants in their future endeavors.”