Calendar Art Contest

Artwork will be judged on artistic merit, originality, creativity, the depiction of the assigned month, and suitability for a wall calendar. Artwork can be landscapes, portraits, still lifes, etc., as long as the monthly theme is somehow portrayed. A panel of judges will select winners in the Spring.

Students and teachers/parents/guardians are responsible for entering only ORIGINAL WORKS of art totally produced by the participating students.

Artwork MAY NOT be copied from other sources without substantial creative changes; this includes other paintings and photographs — unless the photo was composed and/or taken by the student or family member with the student’s direction.

Every element of the artwork (design, lines, marks, paint, color, shapes, shading, highlights, etc.) must be the work of the student whose name appears on the back of the artwork and be done by that student’s hand. 

No tracing of other works is allowed, including sketches by teachers, parents, etc. 

This contest highlights traditional artistic skills. No photographs or artwork created or altered with a computer will be judged for inclusion in the calendar.

Artwork deemed to be too similar to a copied source or plagiarized will be disqualified. If plagiarism is discovered after awards are made and/or the calendar printed, Indiana Connection reserves the right to request the award money be returned. The student also may be disqualified from future contests, and the artwork and student’s name will be removed from our website gallery of past winners.

Drawings should be no larger than 11×14 inches and no smaller than 8×10 inches. (Paintings on canvas can be larger.)

Drawings on white or light-colored paper will reproduce best.

Do not use ruled notebook paper.

The artwork can be most any medium as long as the art is relatively flat. Charcoal and pastel drawings should be sprayed with a fixative. Do not use glitter, sand, liquids, or other elements that can flake off or otherwise damage the works of other students. No photographic process, digitally-created or digitally-manipulated art, metallic or fluorescent paints may be used in the finished, submitted art entry.

Artwork in the horizontal or “landscape” position best fits the wall calendar’s format.

The artwork should be stand-alone artwork; do not include the name of the month, days of the week, or calendar dates in the art itself.

Submit the original artwork. Judges will not consider photocopies.
Do not mount, mat, or frame artwork.
Do not fold or crease artwork.
Please do not submit artwork from previous years.

One of the following two methods MUST be used to identify the art and artist depending on where the artwork was created or how it was submitted. Please use the most appropriate method. (Downloadable PDF of entry forms at the bottom of the page.)

Entries from Home or a Small Group (Method A)

On the back of each entry, in the lower right-hand corner, legibly print: student’s first and last name, age, grade, school, names of parents or guardians, complete home address with city and ZIP, and phone number with area code. Also, please title the work, briefly note how it connects to the month if the connection is not obvious and include any other info judges might find useful.

In addition to information on the back of each entry, each entry must include a copy of the entry form (A) for the 2025 calendar available from Indiana Connection or downloaded from IndianaConnection.org. Each student-artist must sign the form and parent/guardian (if the student is under 18 years old) acknowledging the student has adhered to the rules of originality and each submission is original according to the guidelines above.

Entries from a Large Group, Classroom, or School (Method B)

If including all the above information is impractical because of the number of entries or is a violation of school policy, a large group of simultaneous entries from a single source should include on the back of each entry, in the lower right hand corner, the student’s first and last name, grade and a complete contact phone number. Please make sure all information is included and legible, and group submissions are sorted by grade. Try to have the students title their works, briefly note the connection to the assigned month if it is not obvious, and include any other info or description of the work that judges might find helpful.

In addition to information on the back of each entry, each package of entries must include a copy of the entry form (B) for the 2025 calendar available from Indiana Connection or downloaded from IndianaConnection.org. The form must be signed by the art instructor/classroom teacher acknowledging that the students have adhered to the rules of originality and each submission is original according to the guidelines above.