SmartArt Student Art Competition Winners Announced

A Grand Rapids Public Schools senior’s painting depicting the evolution of electricity production in Michigan has earned her a $1,000 college scholarship and prominent display of her winning creation in downtown Grand Rapids as ArtPrize heads into its final week.

Grace Cameron’s piece, “Winds of Time,” was chosen by three professional judges as the top winner of the fourth annual SmartArt competition among Grand Rapids Public Schools’ high school students, sponsored by Consumers Energy.

Cameron, who attends City High School, was first among the Top 10 finalists in the SmartArt (Students Making Art with a Renewable Theme) competition.

Cameron said her piece highlights two of her biggest interests: history and the environment. The painting depicts several eras of electrical generating plants during Consumers Energy’s history, from the Croton hydroelectric dam built in 1907 on the Muskegon River in Newaygo County to two wind energy parks constructed in recent years in Mason and Tuscola counties.

This year, for the first time, Consumers Energy’s Facebook page hosted a “People’s Choice” contest based on the number of likes, shares and comments. The People’s Choice winner is Eric Steeby, a senior at City High School, who received nearly 500 votes out of nearly 2,700 votes cast. He will receive a $200 Visa gift card and his art teacher Anne Krenselewski will receive a $200 gift card toward classroom supplies.

The remaining top finalists received a variety of prizes.