Aliisa Rantanen's first-place entry. Gargoyle photo by Rachel Skoza (click to enlarge)

Lor Sligar's second-place entry. Gargoyle photo by Rachel Skoza (click to enlarge)

CHAMPAIGN — Senior Aliisa Rantanen and junior Lor Sligar have won the top two prizes in the annual art contest sponsored by the Central Illinois Chapter of the National Society of Arts and Letters.

Rantanen won the first prize of $400 for her portrait of a scene from her kitchen. Sligar won the second prize of $200 for her sketch of a spooky house.

This local high school competition, created because The News-Gazette discontinued its high school scholastic art show, allows students from around the area to submit art within a certain criterion for prize money.

The criterion for this year was to create a two-dimensional piece, done in any media except pencil. Both Rantanen and Sligar used pen and watercolor paints on their pieces.

“I wanted to experiment with pen and watercolors and thought that this fresh kitchen scene would be the perfect way to try it,” Rantanen said.

Done almost in a single day at home, Rantanen first sketched out her idea with pencil, tracing it with pen and filling in some color. Not bad for $400.

On the other hand, Sligar dug up an old sketch from her homework sketchbook last semester. As studio art teacher Lisa Evans suggested, she used it as the basis for her entry.

Sligar originally sketched her design during Halloween while she watched “CSI.” Working in class, she took about a week to complete it.

Both winners already have ideas of what to spend their prize money on. Rantanen is leaning toward using the money for prom, while Sligar thinks she’ll save it for her future car.

As some may know, Rantanen is a very successful artist. Interested in industrial design and graphic design, she is already contemplating two colleges.

“I am looking at both the University of Michigan and Carnegie Mellon University (in Pittsburgh),” Rantanen said. “I can’t see myself doing anything other than something art-related.”