Congressman Cloud is inviting high school students from Texas’ 27th Congressional District to participate in the 2026 Congressional Art Competition. This annual competition highlights and encourages talented students from across the district, and Congressman Cloud’s office is now accepting submissions. In addition to downloading the release form linked below.
Download Release Form Here
Rules and Regulations for Teachers and Students Here
Students grade 9-12 are welcome to submit various styles and types of art, ranging from paintings to photography to collages to mixed media. The artwork must be original, two-dimensional, 15 lbs. maximum weight, and no larger than 26” x 26” x 4” (including the frame).
Accepted mediums are as follows:
- Paintings – including oil, acrylics, and watercolor
- Drawings – including pastels, colored pencil, pencil, charcoal, ink, and markers
- Collages – two dimensional only
- Prints – including lithographs, silkscreen, and block prints
- Mixed Media
- Computer Generated Art
- Photography
The first-place winner will have his or her artwork displayed in the U.S. Capitol for an entire year. The second-place winner will have his or her artwork displayed in Congressman Cloud’s Washington, D.C. office. Two people’s choice award winners will have their artwork displayed in Congressman Cloud’s Victoria and Corpus Christi office. A panel of local community members will make up the judging board.
The Congressional Institute, which organizes the competition, may hold an event in Washington D.C. later this year to honor first place winners. If so, the winning student from the 27th District will receive two round-trip airline tickets to travel to Washington, D.C. to attend the event.
The winning artwork will hang in the U.S. Capitol for the entire year of the exhibition and cannot be returned to students earlier. Students should, therefore, submit artwork they will not need for other purposes.
Submissions may be brought to Congressman Cloud’s offices in Corpus Christi and Victoria. The deadline for submission is Thursday, April 2th at 4:30 PM CST. Please email a high quality digital photo of your submission to cassidy.lopez@mail.house.gov or marisa.loa@mail.house.gov along with a completed release form found here. If you have additional questions or need assistance submitting artwork, please call Congressman Cloud’s Corpus Christi office at 361-884-2222.
2025 Winner
Edna Hisler, by Bobbi Catalano, Gregory-Portland High School
