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SALT LAKE CITY — Having her artwork viewed in exhibits in Utah, New York and Rhode Island isn't something Savannah Peterson could have anticipated.
"It's really just shocking to know that so many people will be seeing something that I made myself," said Peterson, a senior at Juab High School.
Her artwork is now touring the country along with another Utahn's work and that of 128 other winners as part of the Art.Write.Now.Tour.
The tour makes a stop Wednesday at the Salt Lake Main Library, 210 E. 400 South, and remain on display there until Nov. 19. The exhibit is free.
Peterson and Nicholas Adelman, a Highland High School graduate, both won a national gold medal in the 2014 Scholastic Art & Writing contest, qualifying their work for the tour.
Adelman's "Celtic Shoe Design" has been on display in Utah before, but this time is different, he said.
"To have my artwork revisit Utah as a result of a prestigious award is highly gratifying," Adelman said. "Regardless of the venue, I am always happy to display my art in the city that fostered its creation — Salt Lake City."
More than 255,000 students from seventh to 12th grades entered the 2014 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards contest. Peterson and Adelman were the only Utah winners.
The tour's first stop was in Rhode Island at the Rhode Island School of Design. The Art.Write.Now tour will make its final stop at the Livingston Manor in New York in February.
"Having my art displayed in Utah is special to me because most of my friends and family live here and they can come to my art shows with me, and they're always really supportive," Peterson said.
Creating art has changed Peterson's life in many ways, she said. As the Visual Arts Sterling Scholar at Juab High, she taught a monthlong art class for children over the summer.
"I have had endless opportunities for teaching and learning that I would not have had otherwise," Peterson said.
Adelman said, as a visual thinker, art is critical to his life.
"I wouldn't say that art has changed my life, but rather I have realized that artistic expression is necessary for me," he said. "Whether it be through designing shoes or studying art, I will always have art in my life."
The tour, now in its fifth year, is presented by the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers and funded by Scholastic Inc., the National Endowment for the Arts, and Blick Art Materials and Utrecht Art Supplies.
Virginia McEnerney, executive director of the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers, said the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards are "positively formative" for aspiring artists.
"Winning this award gives them a different idea about the possibilities for their future," McEnerney said.
Famous alumni of the competition include Truman Capote, Andy Warhol, Sylvia Plath and Robert Redford.
I think that Salt Lake City especially is known as a creative community, and I think Utah really respects the arts and really fosters a lot of great art from people of all ages. It kind of shows a bright future for that to continue.
–Andre Shaw, Salt Lake City Library
"We're kind of the one location to show these works in the West," said Andre Shaw, spokesman for the Salt Lake Main Library. "It's really phenomenal. We're really proud to have the show here and exhibit some of the best up-and-coming artists at a very young age."
Shaw said the artists show a lot of promise and are the cutting-edge of the arts.
"I think that Salt Lake City especially is known as a creative community, and I think Utah really respects the arts and really fosters a lot of great art from people of all ages," he said. "It kind of shows a bright future for that to continue."
McEnerney said she sees a lot of potential in the Utah students and hopes the tour stop in a Utah museum will pique interest in the contest.
"We don't have a ton of activity from Utah, but we would love — really, really love — to see more kids from that state participate in the awards," she said. "The landscape of Utah is not really that well represented in the work that we see, so I think people are curious."
McEnerney said she hopes to encourage more students to take a chance and submit their artwork in the contest.
"You just never know," she said. "Take the challenge to submit to the Scholastic Awards, and maybe it will change your life." Email: ebench@deseretnews.com
