Olivia Busby was selected as the winner of the 2025 Fourth District Congressional Art Competition sponsored by U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman.
Busby, a member of the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts Class of 2025 from Heber Springs, earned the recognition for her piece called “County Fair”. The piece will be placed on display for a year at the U.S. Capitol. Busby also earned fourth place in the competition for a piece called “Lined Bricks”.
The competition is held annually, and each member of the U.S. House of Representatives may host a competition for their district. Top pieces are displayed in Washington, D.C., while other award winners may be displayed in each representative’s offices, both in D.C. and in their home state.
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Busby said she found out she had won this year’s competition in an email from Lola Warren, an ASMSA art instructor. “When I got that email saying I’d won, the only thing I could reply back was a big fat, ‘WHAT DOES THAT MEAN,’ caps and all,” she said. “For me, it means the world. Literally, a wholly different region of the U.S. that I’ve never been privileged enough to visit is going to be able to see not only my work but acknowledge my own origins. It’s very shocking.”
“County Fair” is an acrylic on canvas that is the third part of a series of paintings which aimed to show Southern American nostalgia and culture, she said. “I’ve always been naturally inclined to observe and record what I see through art, and I had always been the ‘art kid’ in elementary school due to winning a duck-stamp art contest in third grade,” Busby said.
She plans to attend the Kansas City Art Institute to major illustration with the desire to work on video game design and creating comics with other creators, calling them her dream jobs. Busby said she was inspired to follow her passion for art by a family member.
“What really solidified this path for me was finding out that my passed-on dad had his own collection of sketchbooks which he worked on despite battling poverty with a family of three,” she said. “It old me that my little habits of doodling that just felt natural should be something that is livable. So, I do my best to put my art out into the world and enjoy it as I see just how skilled I can get. But also, achievements like these are a justice to those like my dad whose art hides due to poor circumstance.”
Busby encouraged other student artists to continue to enter contests such as the Congressional Art Competition. “Never let getting second, third or even 10th place deter you from putting yourself out there and trying again,” she said.
“I’m grateful to each student who participated in this year’s Congressional Art Competition! I am always immensely proud of each student who takes the time to work hard on their entry and applaud them for their diligence and creativity,” Westerman said in a post announcing the winners on his Facebook page.