Community Invited to Get Creative, Find Personal Connections, Enter MLK Art Contest
“I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed — we hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.”
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr’s famous quote is at the heart of many history-making, groundbreaking and inspiring moments spread across generations. Remaining relevant in today, the quote also serves as this year’s prompt for the seventh annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission of Mid-Michigan Annual Art Contest.
In a press release, Elaine Hardy, chairperson for the MLK Commission of Mid-Michigan, said, “the arts have a unique ability to frame our world in ways that bring people together and cause them to think differently about our world. We believe this art contest provides context for people to help promote the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King.”
Local artists and students are encouraged to submit their original artwork, ranging from acrylic paints, to pencil, charcoal and even digital photography. Winning submissions in grades 6-8 and 9-12 can win $500, and adults can win $1,000. Submission forms are available online. Submissions are accepted through Sunday, April 13.
Karla Forrest-Hewitt is the coordinator for the contest, a role she has held since 2022.
“We’re hoping to really get people to express themselves through art, within the theme of social justice,” Forrest-Hewitt said. “I think it’s really powerful that the art contest includes young school-aged artists as well as adults because I think that the things they’re able to tell are very powerful.”
Last year, Lansing Everett High School student Seraphim Prince submitted original work in the contest, and spoke about the experience. Prince heard about the contest in their AP studio art class, and felt inspired by the prompt.
“The piece I made was titled, ‘Compassion,’ based on a keyword from the prompt, which was a quote from Thurgood Marshall,” Prince said. “It is a stylized portrait of Thurgood Marshall that had the words from the prompt incorporated into it. Themes of the piece include earth tones like brown, tan, and gold, as well as the word compassion. I made the piece using markers of all kinds, pens, color pencils and collage elements. I used a picture from online and recreated the image, then made it more stylized and blocky. I used words in a section of the portrait that was black to make it more interesting, and outlined areas I wanted in different colors. I then colored it and added collage in the background.”
Prince has competed in other contests before, but is very proud of winning last year’s event.
“The piece is currently in my art binder along with many of my other pieces, though I am planning on giving it to one of my art teachers,” Prince said. “I know if I hadn’t had her as a teacher, I would never have submitted the piece in the first place.”
Prince encourages other folks to sit down and take the time to make artwork to submit, solely to enjoy the process.
“It doesn’t matter if you think you will win or not because I know I never expected to win,” they said. “You don’t have a chance unless you try.”
Jenny Cronin, 45, an art teacher at Kinawa Middle School in Okemos, initially shared the contest with her students. Two years ago, she decided to submit her own art in the adult competition for the first time. Last year, she took home first place in the adult category.
“Over the last several years I have begun to pursue making my own art as well as teaching art,” Cronin said. “I have been enjoying learning more about the printmaking process and have fallen in love with the process of linocut printmaking. When I heard about the contest, I was excited to create a linocut piece for it because it connects with a lot of the themes of my own artwork — peace, love, justice, and hope.”
Her piece, “Moving Towards Empathy” won last year’s contest, and has even made it into the homes of local residents and travelers who purchased prints at the MSU craft shows. The piece was inspired by a photo from the largest civil rights demonstration of the 1960s, ‘Freedom Day.’ Almost 500,000 teachers, students, parents and activists joined in a boycott against school segregation in NYC.
“As a teacher, this image spoke to me,” Cronin said. “It reminded me that change can happen in our country when we start from a place of compassion and empathy. We are all interconnected and our success as a nation depends on everyone being treated with dignity, respect and equal opportunities. In times of crisis, our reaction is often to look out for ourselves and fear can turn people against each other. My faith helps me to choose love over fear and to ‘put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.’ I included this verse from Colossians 3:12 in one of the picket signs for this reason.”
Cronin said she was shocked when she learned she won last year’s contest — her first win, which felt very validating. Linocut prints are available in her online Etsy shop.
The artist and teacher encourages other artists to explore their own personal connections with the ideals of MLK.
“Art can be a form of activism against the injustice in our world today,” she said. “Through your creativity and voice, use your artwork as a form of peaceful protest so we can carry on Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision.”
Some other previously winning art has even remained close by, adorning office walls and parking structures, including the north stairwell of the Grove Street Garage. Forrest-Hewitt believes that art as a form of expression is especially vital, given today’s social climate.
“I think now, more than ever, it’s important that we lift voices that have important stories to share,” she said.
Open now through April 13 at midnight, the MLK Art Contest invites students from grades 6-8, 9-12, and adults to promote awareness and appreciation of the Civil Rights movements and advocacy. Artwork must be original and created within the last year, and can be 2D or 3D mediums. Each submission must come with a 250-word narrative explaining the concept and connection to the theme of social justice/inequality.