18th Annual CAC Peoria Area Juried High School Art Exhibition

Name: 18th Annual CAC Peoria Area Juried High School Art Exhibition
Start: 2026-04-18T18:30:00-05:00
End: 2026-04-18T20:30:00-05:00
Location: 305 SW Water St #2R, Peoria, IL, United States, Illinois 61602

Schedule

Sat Apr 18 2026 at 06:30 pm to 08:30 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

305 SW Water St #2R, Peoria, IL, United States, Illinois 61602 | Peoria, IL

Art Reception & Awards Ceremony:
Saturday, April 18, 6:30- 8:30 pm
All participants and the public are welcome to attend the opening reception. Refreshments will be served. There is no admission, but donations are appreciated. At about 7:00pm, the award ceremony will begin with comments from the juror/judge.
The Contemporary Art Center is proud to show off the outstanding work of our area high school students. Students may enter up to two pieces. All area high schools are invited to participate. The teachers from most schools usually organize the students’ work and deliver it but any individual high school age student may enter on their own. We are grateful for the dedication teachers possess to organize, promote and educate their students.
The annual exhibit was founded in 2004 by Executive Director William Butler and his former high school teacher Michael Hagenbuch, then newly retired from Limestone Community High School. Hagenbuch served as the first juror/judge and for some years after continued to volunteer in support of the exhibit.
2024 was the last year we offered this exhibit. In that year, 129 students from 9 area high schools submitted 172 pieces and 129 pieces were chosen to exhibit. The exhibit is designed to simulate typical juried art exhibits in which artists typically pay fees of $25-40 to submit work that may not be chosen by the juror to be displayed.
Each year, a retired high school art teacher serves as the juror and judge, choosing which works will be exhibited as well as designating pieces deserving of special honor with awards of Outstanding Achievement, Honorable Mention and Merit. Besides a ribbon, each award winner receives a scholarship towards an art class at the Contemporary Art Center.