STUDENT ART & ESSAY CONTEST

The City of Gainesville Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs helps to inspire creative minds by presenting the 25th Annual Hoggetowne Medieval Faire Student Art & Essay Contest. The Faire will be held at the Alachua County Fairgrounds and will enchant the Gainesville community for two consecutive weekends, January 29-30 and February 4-6. The theme for this year’s Faire is “The Adventures of King Arthur.”
       
All area students from kindergarten through high school are invited to participate in the annual Student Art & Essay Contest. All of the entries will be displayed at the Faire. The work of all 56 winners will be displayed at the Alachua County Library Headquarters during the month of January. All winners will receive two complimentary passes to the Faire. A special Awards Ceremony will take place on Saturday, January 29th at 2:30 p.m., at the Royal Court inside the Faire. The King and Queen will award three grand-prize winners with $25 gift certificates (5 in $5 increments) to be spent at the Medieval Faire, and a total of 56 first, second, and third place prizes will be awarded.

CONTEST INFORMATION

There is a limit of one entry per student for each contest. Students may enter both the essay and the art contest.

Entry Form: Each entry must include a completed contest entry form attached to the backside of their submission.

Essays: The maximum essay length should be approximately three pages typed or six pages handwritten. Please note that high school entries should be typed. You may choose from one of the following topics:

1) The Adventures of King Arthur
2)  Knights or Ladies
3)  Disease and/or Medicine
4)  The Magna Carta
5)  The Crusades
6)  Create your own story using a medieval theme.

Artwork: Submit artwork in one of two categories:

1)  Two-dimensional artwork includes painting, drawing, ink, and multi-media.
2)  Three-dimensional artwork includes: swords, shields, models of castles, sculptures, etc. Legos will not be accepted. Food products such as sugar cubes may not be used.

Age Groups: Entries will be judged in the following age groups:

Group I - Kindergarten & 1st Grade
Group II - 2nd & 3rd Grade
Group III - 4th Grade
Group IV - 5th Grade
Group V - Middle School
Group VI - High School

Prizes: First, second, and third place prizes will be awarded in each group. Winners will receive a certificate, a Festival T-shirt, and two complimentary passes to the Faire. Three grand prize winners will receive a $25 gift certificate (5 in $5 increments) to be spent at the Medieval Faire. Winners will be notified 30 days after the contest deadline. All students and teachers will receive a certificate recognizing their participation.

Deadline: The contest deadline is December 6th; if you need an extension, you must contact Linda Piper for approval.

Submission: Please drop your students’ entries off at the Hoggetowne Medieval Faire office, which is located in the Historic Thomas Center. The street address is 302 NE 6th Avenue. The Thomas Center is open Monday thru Friday from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Entry Pickup: Due to the limited storage space, entries and unclaimed prizes must be picked up from the Thomas Center by Friday, February 18th, or you may consider picking up the artwork from the Fairgrounds on Sunday, February 6th at 6 p.m. or Monday morning before 10 a.m.

For additional information call Linda Piper, Faire Coordinator, at 352-393-8536,
or e-mail at piperlr@cityofgainesville.org.

Downloadable Student Art Contest Entry Form
               (Requires the free Adobe Acrobat)