Congressman Rogers Welcomes the 2025 Congressional Art Competition Winner to Washington

CORBIN, Ky. -- U.S. Rep. Harold "Hal" Rogers (KY-05) welcomed Kelsi Earles, a senior at Corbin High School, to Washington on Wednesday as the winner of the Congressional Art Competition for Kentucky's Fifth Congressional District. Earles attended a national reception for all of the district winners from across the country at the U.S. Capitol Visitor's Center. Her winning painting is now hanging in the U.S. Capitol Building, where it will remain for one year, representing student artists in southern and eastern Kentucky.

"I take great pride in seeing artwork from home when I walk through the halls of the Capitol Building. This competition is a wonderful opportunity for our talented students to realize their potential and to explore the nation's capital in a new way," said Congressman Rogers, Dean of the House. "Kelsi's artwork captures her imagination and true artistic gift."

Kelsi's first place acrylic painting entitled "Daydream" was inspired by her creative thoughts throughout the day.

"I'm so grateful to have been chosen for the Congressional Art Competition in Kentucky’s 5th District. I want to thank my art teacher, Mrs. Smith, and my parents for always supporting me. My work, Daydream, symbolizes the feeling of being in a fictional world in your head. I find myself daydreaming very often and wanted to create a piece that resembles that feeling. I used saturated colors with a realistic style to demonstrate the idealistic universe you create when you daydream," said Earles.

The second place artwork entitled "Built on Coal" was created by Madeline Frye, a sophomore at Southwestern High School in Pulaski County. Frye's artwork is a symbolic representation of how coal miners helped build America. Her colored pencil artwork features two coal miners in black and white, standing near a colorful scenic forest with a Kentucky city on the horizon.

The third place artwork entitled "In the Churchyard: Blue Beauty Meets the Blue Moon of Kentucky" was created by Blakely Callahan, a sophomore at South Laurel High School. She used acrylic paint to capture a Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse, illuminated by the "Blue Moon of Kentucky."

Visit Congressman Rogers' Facebook page @CongressmanHalRogers to see entries for this year's competition.

For more information about Congressman Rogers' work in Washington and at home in Kentucky, visit halrogers.house.gov and follow him on social media.