Alaska Biodiversity Art Contest

AWCC’s Annual Art Contest is a celebration of Alaska’s majestic wildlife! The 8th Annual Art Contest will launch on August 1, 2026.

This year’s theme is Tundra, Tides, & Mountains!

The AWCC team is excited about our 8th annual art contest! This year’s contest is open to both Alaskan students and out of state students (within the United States and territories). Our 2026 theme celebrates the biodiversity of Alaska’s many ecosystems. Each ecosystem is unique and has its own flora and fauna. To the north you’ll find muskox and Arctic fox living on the rugged, treeless tundra. Alaska’s thousands of miles of coastline are teeming with marine life small and large. The many mountain ranges of our state stretch across the landscape from peaks to valleys.

Much of Alaska’s biodiversity of wildlife is reflected at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. AWCC houses injured and orphaned wildlife and is dedicated to preserving Alaska’s wildlife through conservation, education, research, and quality animal care. A resident black bear might be napping in a tree while a herd of wood bison graze in their habitat under the summer sun. In the spring and fall, Cook Inlet beluga whales follow tides down the Turnagain Arm to the rivers surrounding the property. As seasons change, hummingbirds and other migratory birds cross the skies over nearby mountains and valleys.

The hope of this art contest is to inspire education about Alaskan ecosystems and the conservation work surrounding them. By participating in this exciting annual event, students and their support system help us further our mission, one entry at a time.

The AWCC art contest is intended to be an educational event. With that we encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity to both do your research and practice your creativity! Below are some resources to help you become further inspired! Please email artcontest@alaskawildlife.org with any questions!

Learn more about Alaska’s ecosystems at ADF&G: https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=ecosystems.list
Learn more about Ecosystems of Coastal Alaska at the USDA Forest Service: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r10/natural-resources/ecosystems-coastal-alaska
Learn about the animals of AWCC here: https://alaskawildlife.org/animals/
Learn more about wildlife in the ADF&G species Profiles: https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=animals.main
Learn about Portage Valley and the Portage Glacier in the US Forest Service Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/chugach/recarea/?recid=71943
Learn more about Alaska’s Rainforest on the ADF&G website: https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=rainforest.main

Timeline

Accepting submissions: August 1st – October 1st
Staff selections for gallery: October 5th – October 12th
In person gallery in Be Wild Gift Shop: October 16th – October 31st
Voting for t-shirt and scholarship prizes in Be Wild Gift Shop: October 16th – October 31st
Virtual gallery is published, closing event hosted on Zoom: November 7th at 10am (AKST)

Prizes

Prizes will be awarded to each student selected for the 2026 art gallery. Art selected for the gallery will have a chance to be awarded a scholarship accompanied by their artwork being featured at AWCC.

Awards will be given based on the following categories:
Grade school (PreK – 5)
Middle school (6 – 8)
High school (9 – 12)
Alaska Ambassador Award: This award will be given to the Alaska student entry that exemplifies the theme and inspires our AWCC team.

7th Annual Highlights

“With submissions from students across Alaska and the rest of the country, there were 101 entries in this year’s art contest. Each piece submitted reflected the wonders of wildlife in Alaska. I hope the creativity and talent of all the artists will spark joy and curiosity of our natural world.”

Arlo Adamson

Naturalist & Education Specialist

We hope you enjoy this celebration of 2025’s selected artists in the virtual gallery below!

: Sticker Recipients

: Alaska Ambassador Recipient

: 9-12 Recipient

: 6-8 Recipient

: K-5 Recipient

6th Annual Highlights

We hope you enjoy this celebration of 2024’s selected artists in the virtual gallery below!

“We received 116 submissions this year from students across the country and in every age category these students created artwork that showed an admiration and respect for the vast diversity of wildlife that call Alaska home.”

Natalie Sawley

Naturalist & Education Specialist

5th Annual Highlights

We hope you enjoy this celebration of 2023’s selected artists in the virtual gallery below!

“It was truly an honor to receive so many amazing works of art from students across the country for the 5th Annual Art Contest. I loved getting to read what each artist loved about the Turnagain arm and see that reflected in their artwork. I hope that you will commend each of the selected artist on their amazing creations celebrating the Turnagain Arm.”

Natalie Sawley

Naturalist & Education Specialist

4th Annual Highlights

The Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center is so thankful to all of the inspired artists that decided to share their creativity with us, and we are eager to celebrate 2022’s selected artists in the virtual gallery below!

It has been such an honor to help coordinate this year’s 4th Annual Art Contest. No matter what your favorite part about biodiversity is, we hope that you will admire the work of this year’s selected artists and their celebrations of Alaskan biodiversity. There is simply so much to behold!

Grace Lewis

Naturalist & Education Specialist

3rd Annual Highlights

Congratulations to the selected artists from the 2021 Alaska Biodiversity Art Contest! In 2021 we partnered with the Wild Postcard Project and marked our 3rd annual art contest. We hope you enjoy this virtual art gallery that highlights the incredible work of these extremely talented young artists!