Dates: October 17, 2022 – January 23, 2023
Sponsored by:

For many years, the anniversary of the founding of the Georgia colony at Savannah on February 12, 1733, has been known as "Georgia Day." Recognized in many ways across the state, each year the Georgia Historical Society (GHS) hosts fun and unique opportunities for Georgia’s students to explore our state’s past through the lens of historical research and creativity.
Students of all grade levels can compete by creating original artwork on this year’s Georgia Day theme, “Made in Georgia.” After being reviewed and judged for their creativity and use of Festival educational resources, projects will be featured online and through GHS social media. Visit georgiahistoryfestival.com for updates.
- Open to students of all grade levels with categories for elementary, middle, and high school (K-12).
- Students compete by creating original artwork that interprets the theme. Submissions online.
- Winning projects will be featured online and through GHS social media.
The 2023 Georgia Day Art Contest entry period has ended. Please stay tuned to GHS social media on Friday, February 10th to learn the winners of this year’s contest.

In keeping with the 2023 GHF theme, “The Promise of a More Perfect Union: Reconstruction and the Gilded Age,” this year’s Georgia Day Statewide Art Contest is meant to inspire students to explore the topic “Made in Georgia.” “Made in Georgia” illustrates how perseverance and progress during a time of great change in Georgia helped generate products, industries, and entrepreneurs during Reconstruction and the late 19th century and how they continue to impact us today.
“Made in Georgia” Topics to Explore:
Interpreting the annual theme is one of the most important parts of participating in the Georgia Day Parade Banner Competition or Statewide Student Art Contest. Need inspiration? Check out one or more of the following suggested topics that can be explored within the theme, “Made in Georgia”:
- Illustrate the products, industries, and people who influenced Georgia’s economic landscape:
- Products
- Peaches
- Peanuts
- Cotton
- Pecans
- Marble
- Peoples
- Sharecroppers
- Miners
- Entrepreneurs
- Textile Workers
- Industries
- Agriculture
- Mining
- Textile Industry
- Transportation and Tourism
- Products
- What major economic, political, and social changes occurred during Reconstruction and the Gilded Age in Georgia?
- What individuals or groups of people helped create Georgia’s major industries during this time?
- What individuals or groups of people provided the labor force for Georgia’s industries during this time?
- The art competition is open to any individual student attending public, private, parochial, or home school in Georgia in grades K-12.
- Entry is free and limited to one submission per student.
- Each entry must be an original design.
- The art contest is for drawings/illustrations, paintings, digital works, fine art photography, mixed media, and sculpture.
- Art entries should be original, student-made work that does not infringe on copyrighted material.
- Art entries can be any size but must be submitted as high-resolution images or PDF document.
- Art will be judged on these criteria (see the art contest scoring rubric):
- Interpretation of Theme
- Originality
- Creativity, Neatness
- Overall Presentation
- Art must be submitted as a high-resolution image(s) (You may submit up to three images per art entry. You may submit an additional photo of yourself with your art resulting in no more than four image submissions per art piece).
- Artwork images must be in .jpg or .png format.
- By submitting images to GHS, you are transferring the right to use or reproduce images of banners and other works of art, including images with people, in GHS publications and on all GHS social media platforms.
- Art entries will be judged by GHS staff members and invited community representatives.
- Deadline for submission is January 23, 2023.
Submissions: The 2023 Georgia Day Art Contest entry period has ended. Please stay tuned to GHS social media on Friday, February 10th to learn the winners of this year’s contest.
Winners of each contest will be announced on the GHS website and social media accounts on Georgia Day, February 10, 2023.
Classroom Resources:
Made in Georgia: This guide for K-12 educators includes online resources and background information for historical products and figures featured in the Georgia Standards of Excellence (GSE) for various grade levels.
Made in Georgia Source Set: This set of primary and secondary sources developed by the Georgia Historical Society is meant to support development of critical thinking skills by analyzing photographs, political cartoons, and documents from and about the Reconstruction Era and the Gilded Age. In this document, find sample topics for the “Made in Georgia” theme aligned to the Georgia Standards of Excellence for second-eighth grades. To learn more about the history of the era check out the Made in Georgia digital classroom resource as a compliment to this source set.
Studying Georgia History through Art, a Visual Literacy Activity Guide: Aligned for the second and eighth grade social studies GSE, these classroom activities explore history through art and support practicing visual literacy skills
Informational Teacher Webinar:
“Made in Georgia”: Georgia Day Theme Webinar
December 1, 2022, 4:00 p.m.
Online
Sponsored by: Gulfstream
Highlighting the Newspapers in Education digital publication, “Made in Georgia”, this live webinar for K-12 teachers will support and encourage student participation in the annual Georgia Day events and explore examples of topics withing the theme aligned to the Georgia Standards of Excellence.
Previous Art Contest Winners
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