Young artists shine in WJZ Thurgood Marshall Art Competition ahead of BMA celebration
BALTIMORE - As the city gears up for Sunday's Thurgood Marshall Celebration at the Baltimore Museum of Art, WJZ, the proud media sponsor, is celebrating the finalists of the first-ever Justice Thurgood Marshall Art Competition.
The event, which falls on what would have been the Justice's 115th birthday, will showcase the artistic talents of local students.
Three third-graders made their television debut on WJZ News at 9, named as top finalists in the competition.
"We have some very special talented guests with us this morning," said the anchor during the broadcast.
Among the finalists is 8-year-old Layla Harris, who expressed her excitement about being a winner. "When grandmother told mom and mom told me that's when I found out I was the winner, I'm excited and happy," Harris said. "Art is important to me, it's like important to my life."
Students from Booker T Washington Middle School, Eutaw Marshburn Elementary School, Furman Templeton Preparatory Academy, and Samuel Coleridge Taylor Elementary School were tasked with creating art inspired by one of three quotes by Justice Thurgood Marshall.
Seven-year-old Alex Wright, another finalist, joined the broadcast to showcase his portrayal of the late Supreme Court Justice. "I just looked at the picture and drew," Wright said. "I made Thurgood Marshall."
The competition allowed each student to freely create art through painting, drawing, graphic design, photography, or video—criteria that Harris, who identifies as both an artist and a scientist, says comes easy.
"I'm an artist and a scientist, so I also do science," she said.
The students' expressions of art will be on full display at the Baltimore Museum of Art at the Justice Thurgood Marshall Celebration on Thurgood Marshall Day, Sunday, July 2nd.
