The City of Evanston’s Forestry Division invites all community members to celebrate and support Evanston trees by participating in the second annual “I Heart Evanston Trees” Art Contest.
This year’s contest theme is “My Favorite Tree.” Participants are encouraged to visit cityofevanston.org/forestry to submit artwork representing their favorite tree or trees in Evanston. Representations of all four seasons are welcome.
Submissions will be accepted Monday, August 31 through Friday, September 25. The first 100 contestants to submit their artwork and bring the email confirmation of their entry to Blick Art Materials, located at 1755 Maple Ave. in Evanston, will receive a free Blick Art t-shirt.
Anyone who lives or works in Evanston is eligible to participate in the contest, in addition to non-residents enrolled in Evanston-based schools. Participants are asked to submit high-resolution digital images of their original artwork to one of two categories: photography or non-photography. Acceptable non-photography media include painting, drawing, mixed media, and graphic design. All entries must contain copyright-free art or art released for the entrant’s or public use.
Judging will begin Friday, October 2, with winners announced in mid-October. Prizes will be awarded to six winners in each category (12 total). Prizes include art supplies from Blick Art Materials, specially designed items from Neiger Design, and lawn care service from Greenwise Organic Lawn Care. All winning artists will have their names publicly recognized on the City’s website and have their artwork featured on fundraising materials for the “I Heart Evanston Trees” campaign, including greeting cards and postcards.
The “I Heart Evanston Trees” Art Contest is made possible by generous support from three contest sponsors: Blick Art Materials, Neiger Design and Greenwise Organic Lawn Care.
For more information and contest guidelines, visit cityofevanston.org/forestry, or contact Kumar Jensen at kjensen@cityofevanston.org or 847-448-4311.
About the “I Heart Evanston Trees” Campaign
Since 2006, the invasive pest, Emerald Ash Borer, has claimed the lives of more than 2,000 ash trees in Evanston parks and parkways. The “I Heart Evanston Trees” project was created to aid City efforts to replace fallen trees and diversify Evanston’s tree population to improve resiliency. Residents can contribute to the campaign by visiting iheartevanstontrees.org