Celebrate Wild Salmon Youth Art Contest

More than 300 students from across the nation entered Save Our Wild Salmon’s first-ever Celebrate Wild Salmon youth art contest. From New England to the South, from the Midwest to the West Coast and Alaska, the message is clear — America’s youth love salmon.

Wild salmon are a national treasure. Through art, students celebrated wild salmon and all that they represent to America: healthy lands, rivers and oceans, strong wildlife populations, recreational and commercial fishing heritage, vibrant communities, good jobs and nourishing food.

Even students whose states have never seen a salmon in their streams, sent stacks of beautiful art work expressing their connection to these magnificent fish. While salmon may be a iconic symbol of the Pacific Coast, this species is essential to and valued by the entire nation — economically, culturally and ecologically.

Yet these once-abundant fish are now being pushed to the brink of extinction. Today, all runs of salmon and steelhead on the Snake River — the main tributary to the mighty Columbia — are either extinct or listed under the Endangered Species Act.  Last year only four sockeye salmon returned to their spawning grounds in Idaho. The clock is ticking for these fish.

From the mountain of beautiful art entered by hundreds of students across America, 20 rose above the rest as those that represented both the talents of the artist and the grandeur of wild salmon. In Washington DC this June, at the culmination of the Save Our Wild Salmon 2008 national road show, the top pieces will be on display to show our nation’s leaders that America’s youth value protecting our wild salmon.

Save Our Wild Salmon will fly the top four artists to attend this reception. Congratulations to Elizabeth Hartmann, Ben Daniels, Katelyn Antuna and Ginny Claire Kim! This page will be updated with art show dates and venue details in late March.

Second place winners: Skylar Moore, Hayden Dahmm, Andrew Vorisek and Lily Wang will all receive $100 gift certificates to Patagonia!

Save Our Wild Salmon will also create a calendar featuring the art contest winners — available in June.

Please view the top 20 art works in the slideshow on this page.

Click here to visit the online gallery of the entire collection of art entries.

These spectacular pieces represent hundreds of people across the country speaking up for wild salmon.