Artwork of two local students on display at rodeo

The artwork of two local students has been selected for display at the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo. Sarah Smith’s First Kiss and Julia Pasquarella’s Tombstone Tales are among the top 50 pieces awarded this honor in this year’s Western Art Contest and Exhibit.  

Roughly 572 students entered the contest, which accepts original paintings, drawings or sculptures displaying a western theme.  All submissions were judged in December and Smith, a senior at Johnson High School, and Pasquarella, a junior at Reagan, were among the 50 students to earn a first-place ribbon and a spot in the rodeo exhibit.  Smith was also one of a dozen students selected from the top winners to study at the Western Art Academy within Kerrville’s prestigious Museum of Western Art. 

Twenty-five art pieces from the top 50 will be auctioned to the highest bidder on the last day of the rodeo.  Each student receives the full amount of the winning bid in the form of a college scholarship.  According to Kay Hutchison, chair of the Western Art Committee, last year’s auction raised approximately $250,000, allowing all 25 art students to leave with at least $9,000 in scholarship money. 

“We definitely hope to reach that same amount this year,” says Hutchison.  

Started in 1996 with just seven entries, the Western Art Contest and Exhibit continues to grow in not just the number of participants, but the level of talent.  This year, Hutchison was particularly pleased to see so many schools represented in the contest, which has been regularly dominated by San Antonio Christian School.  The students responsible for the top two art pieces in this year's contest hail from La Vernia High School. 

The students’ artwork will be on display throughout the entire Stock Show and Rodeo, which will be open every day at the AT&T Center through Feb. 21.  The Student Art Auction will be held at 10:45 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 21 in the New Frontier Club. For more information, visit www.sarodeo.com.