City of Santa Clarita officials unveiled the new art exhibit “Congressional Art Competition: An Artistic Discovery,” at the Old Town Newhall Library.

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The art exhibit will be on display through Sept. 29 in the Community Room at the library.

Jennifer Kong, a Golden Valley High student, was awarded first place for her piece titled “The Tea Set,” which will hang in the Cannon Tunnel of the U.S. Capitol through summer 2015.

Capturing the essence of her heritage, the white charcoal on black paper artwork represents Jennifer’s Korean-American roots with a tea set that symbolizes meditation. 

“I chose to do the tea set because I enjoy the tones of the piece,” Kong said in an interview with KHTS AM 1220 in April.

Related: Congressional Art Competition

Mikaela Gilkey, a Valencia High School student, was awarded fifth place for her artwork “The Culture in My Veins,” a self-portrait oil painting, which pays tribute to her Filipino and Hispanic culture.

“It’s portraying me: The headdress is Filipino and the Day of the Dead makeup is Hispanic,” Gilkey said in an interview with KHTS AM 1220 in April. “I just wanted to put as much of me into it as possible.”

Sponsored by the U.S. House of Representatives, the “Congressional Art Competition: An Artistic Discovery” represents finalist art pieces from selected high school students in the 25th Congressional District in California.

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“The City is dedicated to increasing opportunities for local students to participate in and be exposed to high quality art experiences, while raising awareness of the value the arts add to the community. We could not be more thrilled to have two youth participants recognized nationally for their original and impressive work,” said Mayor Laurene Weste.

Each Congressional District across the nation hosted a district-wide art competition to encourage student participation in the arts, and chose a winning piece of artwork to hang in the Cannon Tunnel of the U.S. Capitol.

Related: Golden Valley Freshman Wins 2014 Congressional Art Competition

Each spring, the Congressional Institute sponsors a nationwide high school visual art competition to recognize and encourage artistic talent in the nation and in each congressional district.

Several SCV students have won the 25th District competition in the past, including Yeon Whan Yoon and Laura Peskay from Hart High School, Marissa Embola from Saugus High School and Tyler Recchia and Lindsey Bos from Valencia High School.

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