JoJo Li of Bethel High School wins the Sister Cities of Hampton, Inc. art contest

JoJo Li, an 11th-grade student at Bethel High School, has been selected as the local winner of the Young Artists art contest through Sister Cities of Hampton, Inc. Her piece is titled "New Year Dinner." JoJo’s artist statement below explains her interpretation of the 2023 Young Artists and Authors Showcase theme, Peace By Piece: Food Security in my Community. 

“I wanted to bring my culture and how we celebrate a big day, like Chinese New Year into an art piece for everyone to see,” shared Li. “This piece represents my love for my culture and the things we find joy in doing as a big family. I wanted to make a connection between the end of New Year and how we gather around and feast with many people. That’s what Chinese New Year is about; giving joy and sharing love with family and/or friends. I wanted to give the viewer a feeling of being inside and included in the family. As long as you find joy in whatever you have in front of you, you can enjoy things alone or as a big family.”

The winning entry has been submitted to Sister Cities International for the national competition.

Sister Cities International serves as the national membership organization for sister city programs in nearly 500 communities, with relationships in over 2,000 communities in more than 140 countries. They provide members with a number of programs to support them in promoting citizen diplomacy, peace, and understanding through exchanges that focus on arts and culture, youth and education, business and trade, and community development.

The Young Artists and Authors Showcase (YAAS) is an annual contest that encourages youth worldwide to express the mission of Sister Cities International through original artwork, literature, photography, and music for both original and reinterpreted pieces. Entries are judged on originality, composition, and theme interpretation.

Hampton City Schools has previously had two national first-place winners and three national honorable mention winners. Good luck to JoJo in this year’s national competition!