Rock Falls students win big in Big Northern Conference art competition

April 21, 2021 at 3:00 pm CDT

This acrylic painting by Ezmeralda Vega of Rock Falls High School was one of the entries in this year's annual Big Northern Conference Art and Design Competition.

The annual Big Northern Conference Art and Design Competition, held virtually this year because of COVID-19, features 205 works from eight high schools, including Rock Falls and Oregon.

Rock Falls seniors West Oiler-Frederick, Emma Watts and Phillip Masini; juniors Michael Zigler, Owen Pillars and Autumn Pinkus; and sophomores Ezmeralda Vega and Raul Garcia; and Oregon sophomore Sophia Stender all won awards or honorable mentions.

West Oiler-Frederick of Rock Falls High School took first place in photography with his entry, "Ghost Boy."

Dixon native and well-known artist Sydni Rueben, now of Plattsburgh, New York, was one of the judges.

Go to https://bncartcompetition2021.weebly.com/ to see the show in its entirety, and the list of winners. Make sure to click on each category to see all the students’ works.