Local teen wins art contest

By Janice Kurbjun
Times staff writer

Since the fifth grade, Brandon Russell has painted ducks and sent them to Jackson in April.

The nine-by-11 paintings are judged as part of the Federal Junior Duck Stamp Contest, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service-sponsored art competition for kindergartners to 12th-graders. Most years, Russell placed first in his age group, but never best overall. Until this year.

“It was my last chance to enter and I finally got what I was looking for,” the Encampment High School senior said.

His oil painting of a Cinnamon Teal, a reddish-colored bird local to the Platte Valley, earned the blue ribbon in Wyoming and will appear as one of about 50 paintings to travel through the country this summer. Each state and U.S. territory should be represented in the show.

The painting made its way to San Diego for the national competition on April 17, but did not win. Instead, a rendering of Hawaiian Geese by Seokkyun Hong, a student in Dallas, will appear on the stamp, which sells for $5 to support conservation education. Hong also receives a $5,000 prize along with a trip to Washington, D.C.

In the past, Russell has painted trumpeter swans, Canadian geese, a green-winged teal, a pintail and even a prior attempt at a cinnamon teal.

“I wish I’d had my own photos” to work from, he said. He used several reference photos to create his artwork. “(The birds) are real pretty,” he said.

When Russell first entered the contest at 11, he was already a duck hunter. Since it’s necessary to purchase a $5 duck stamp to hunt migratory water birds, the idea of his art appearing on the stamp was appealing.

Now, seven years later, he’s not sure if he’ll try his luck in the adult competition. “It’s real tough,” he said. “Some of those guys spend two years on their entries.” In comparison, Russell spent an hour a day for a month on this year’s entry.

Russell is going to the University of Wyoming next year to major in art. The $1,500 winnings can be used any way he wants, but is recommended for furthering his art education.
“I might buy a dirt bike,” he admitted after outlining plans to save the funds for college.