Ottawa Township High School has selected four students as winners of its annual holiday art card competition.

The OTHS Board of Education and administration chose juniors Marissa Barrientos, Reese Purcell and Charlie White and senior Marr Walker as winning entries after students created submissions during the last week of October.

“I really just wanted to make something unique with pastels that stood out to my audience,” Purcell said, who featured a rendering of the OTHS main building in a snow globe. “I put a lot of work into this, and I’m excited to see it come to life.”

“Watercolor, colored pencil, and digital art is what I mixed together to create mine,” Walker said, referencing her artwork featuring traditional Christmas lights. “I added half tones to it, the little dots and stuff, which was inspired by my love of comic books and superheroes.”

“I wanted to go for a vintage Christmas feel with the warmer colors and the different contrasts of red and green with the cream color,” explains Barrientos, who chose a classic Christmas candle image for her theme. “I worked pretty hard on it, and I really liked how it turned out.”

The holiday card competition is an annual event open to all OTHS art students. Four cards are selected and mass-produced for distribution by the school district.

“I am always amazed by the students’ diverse ideas and abilities,” OTHS art teacher Kevin Olesen said. “It is also fun to see them (the students) in a slightly competitive nature.”

“The winners appreciate having a physical print of their work,” Olesen said. “It is a great portfolio piece for students who are pursuing post-secondary art opportunities.”