LA Opera and GRoW @ Annenberg Announce Winners of Student Art Contest for SALOME

Three Southern California college students were selected as the winners of LA Opera's Salome art contest.

Thanks to the generous support of GRoW @ Annenberg, LA Opera invited students from across southern California to create original artwork inspired by the company's upcoming production of the opera Salome by Richard Strauss, which opens on February 18. More than 35 students from 14 colleges submitted artwork for the contest, hoping to win cash prizes and to see their creations on the Salome program cover and displayed on special posters. The winners were chosen by a jury, chaired by Gregory Annenberg Weingarten of the Annenberg Foundation and by Regina Weingarten, a member of the LA Opera board of directors. The jury also included Christopher Koelsch, LA Opera President and CEO; Diane Bergman, LA Opera Vice President of Marketing and Communications; Keith Rainville, LA Opera Brand Manager; and TIM JOhnson, Film Director at Dreamworks Animation and a member of the LA Opera board of directors. The winners will receive their prizes at the opening night of Salome at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.

Marshall Dahlin of Cal State Fullerton was declared the first place winner. His submission will serve as the cover of the show's program and Mr. Dahlin will also receive a $5,000 cash prize.

The second place winner is David Kwock, who will receive a $2,000 cash prize. Mr. Kwock attends Cal State Dominguez Hills.

Lauren Moss, a student at Santa Monica College, is the third place winner, and she will receive a $1,000 cash prize. (The three winning submissions are pictured below.)

"As a longtime supporter of LA Opera, GRoW @ Annenberg wanted to extend its passion for the arts to a younger generation of artists, and we're excited to support the first ever art contest for LA Opera and for this production of Salome," said Gregory Annenberg Weingarten. "The jury and I were overwhelmed by the quality of the submissions and are thrilled to share Marshall Dahlin's powerful work on every program cover."

All three winners will see posters of their original artwork displayed in the lobby of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and on the Music Center Plaza during LA Opera's performances of Salome, which runs from February 18 through March 19. The winners will also attend the opening performance of Salome and celebrate with the artists at the opening night cast supper. Additionally, all qualified contestants have been invited to see Salome during its run.

For more information about LA Opera's production of Salome, visit LAOpera.org/Salome.