From the Sam Noble Museum of National History:

Artists and dinosaur enthusiasts ages five and up are invited to submit entries to the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History’s twelfth Dinosaur Art Contest and Exhibit. Both graphics and sculpture are welcome. Prizes will be awarded in three age categories for amateur artists and in an additional professional division. The artwork will be judged by a panel of educators, artists and paleontologists. Three hundred of the best entries will be shown in an exhibit at the museum set for March 13 through May 19, 2007. The Dino Art Contest and Exhibition are made possible by the Kirkpatrick Family Fund.

The Dinosaur Art Contest is intended to encourage people of all ages to do research on ancient life and to produce creative interpretations of that life. The first contest, held in 1983, received only 60 entries. In subsequent years, however, the competition has received an average of 3,000 entries, including international entries from countries such as Russia (then the USSR), China, Japan, Slovakia and the Czech Republic (then Czechoslovakia), Mexico, England and Guam.

“The international aspect of the contest is intended to point up both the world-wide appeal and distribution of dinosaurs, and to encourage creative interpretation,” commented Wendy Gram, SNOMNH head of education.

“Dinosaurs are often a child’s first contact with science,” said Roberta Pailes, SNOMNH education officer. “We hope the contest will encourage kids to do a little research and then have fun creating drawings and sculptures.”

Professional artists also are encouraged to enter. Professionals are defined as people that make a living through the visual arts or have formal post-secondary school art training.

There is a $10 entry fee for professional artists. This fee covers the cost of returning the artwork. There is no entry fee for non-professional artists.

Winners and exhibited artists will be notified in late February. Winning and exhibited artists, their families and teachers are invited to an awards ceremony and reception on May 19th, the last day of the exhibit. At the end of the reception exhibited artists may take their artwork home.

Additional information, contest rules, suggestions for things to think about before you start drawing, and application forms will be available Sept. 19 on the museum’s Web site: www.snomnh.ou.edu/dinoart. Or you can e-mail questions to dinoart@ras.snomnh.ou.edu or call the museum education department at (405) 325-4712.