Tampa Republic

The City of Tampa and Mayor Jane Castor invite the public to view a new art exhibit, Shine A Light Youth Art Contest, produced by the Tampa Jewish Community Centers & Federation.

This exhibit, on display now in the lobby of the Tampa Municipal Office Building, is helping raise awareness about antisemitism, share educational resources and empower individuals to stand against the hatred of Jewish people through the power of art.

Mayor Jane Castor and the Tampa JCCs & Federation will honor the winners with a short ceremony on Tuesday, June 6 at 12:30 p.m. on the first floor of the Tampa Municipal Office Building, located at 306 E. Jackson St.

“The idea behind this competition was to tap into the tremendous artistic talent of students in our community and use it to bring attention to, or “shine a light” on, antisemitism and hate," Jeffrey Berger, Tampa JCCs & Federation President said. "We’re thrilled that these remarkable students, their parents and teachers accepted the challenge of helping to combat antisemitism and successfully used their art to convey this message.”

The 2nd annual Shine A Light Youth Art Contest was held in March 2023. The contest was developed to raise awareness of antisemitism, share educational resources and empower individuals to stand against the hatred of Jewish people through the power of art.

Students in grades 4-12 were invited to submit two-dimensional artwork measuring no more than 24” x 24” along with a written description of their piece. Artwork included computer graphics, charcoal, pencil, lithography, pastels, oils, acrylics, mixed media and more. 

Sixty-four entries were submitted to the Tampa JCC and Federation for review in two age groups: 

• Junior Division, which included fourth through eighth graders.
• Senior Division, which included grades 9 through 12. 

For the second time, Mayor Castor served as one of the judges for the competition. The winning artwork was revealed at an awards event held at the Shanna & Bryan Glazer JCC on April 18. Students who created winning artwork received cash awards: first place, $1,000; second place, $750; third place, $300; honorable mentions, $100. In all, 26 students were awarded. 

The winning pieces are now a traveling collection, to be exhibited in various locales around our community. The first stop is Tampa’s City Hall. Future exhibits include the Tampa Bay History Center and Tampa International Airport. 

To view the artwork, please visit jewishtampa.com/shinealight

Original source can be found here.