When your kid makes a piece of art, they’re also building confidence, processing feelings, and creating connections. That’s what we’re celebrating with the Outschool Visual Arts Showcase—and your kid could win up to $1,000 USD* in prize value, a one-year Outschool Membership and a billboard in Times Square!




*or the equivalent amount in local currency depending on jurisdiction of residence
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These Outschool art teachers are experts in their fields and champions of creativity.





This piece is a drawing of an eye with only the iris colored to symbolize how if we look into ourselves, we all have our own “super powers.” This concept inspires me as a person because it helps remind ourselves to never give up and that we all have a purpose on living whether you know it or not.

Hi! My name is Pip and I absolutely love drawing! It is my favorite hobby to do in my spare time. This is my piece “Two Birds are Better Than One.” This is one of my favorite pieces because it highlights the teamwork between two birds building a cozy nest together, it also shows that teamwork goes a long way. It makes the title come to life, showing that two birds really are better than just one bird.
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I enjoy Lego's, reading, building science kits, gaming, nature, and spending time with my family and friends. I also like baseball, swimming, diving, and taekwondo. My art piece was inspired by my uncle. It is colorful with a splash of teeth added in to make the piece Awsome with a dinosaur twist.

I created this piece with acrylic paint, letting bold colors and movement guide the scene rather than trying to control every detail. The sky shifts from deep blue into warm bursts of gold and red, while the quiet crescent moon balances the intensity below. As I painted, I allowed unexpected marks and small imperfections to stay. Instead of taking away from the work, they add character and make it feel more real. To me, those moments aren’t flaws—they’re what bring the painting to life.

Hello! My name is Adalynn! This piece is inspired by my love for animals. While drawing it, I initially struggled because my cat's ears were too tall and skinny. I had mistakenly drawn over the ears with colored pencil, which made it impossible to erase. I overcame this problem by using a sand eraser, which was the perfect tool for the job. It was a risk to attempt a realistic drawing, but I'm very happy with the result. Thank you so much for your time, and I hope you enjoy my artwork!

As a young child, I was terrified of tornadoes and extreme weather. As I've grown older, I've fallen in love with it instead! I now want to become a meteorologist and storm chaser. I hope to help save lives through accurate weather prediction. And I hope to inspire young people like myself who are terrified of strong storms they can't control. Tornadoes, like the El Reno tornado of May 31, 2013, inspire me to overcome my greatest fears!

I’m Harper. I love to read and art. My favorite colors are pink, green, and yellow. I love butterflies and they have never been in the sea before and I wanted to let her explore a new world. The sea creatures welcome her and are kind to her. It makes me feel happy and proud that she is brave enough to explore somewhere new.

Hi, I'm Ivy and, yeah, I drew Sanji from an anime called One Piece. A few years ago, I was watching One Piece for the first time and immediately I was drawn to Sanji. I wasn't sure at the time why, but now I can say with confidence that he has a kind, caring personality that I idolize and look up to. While I may not make it to the final few or is as talented as others, I will always continue drawing and draw Sanji because he makes me feel like I can be somebody.



I competitively figure skate. I am at the ice rink almost everyday for about 2 hours. People tend to underestimate figure skating, saying it's petty or materialistic. Or they're impressed, only seeing the stage and the dresses, not the work it took to get there. Hard work, perseverance, and effort all go into it. The friends, coaches, and supportive parents all play a role making even daily practice wonderful. There's always something about stepping out onto the ice that always feels magical.

2026 is the Year of the Horse in the Chinese lunar calendar. Both my grandpas, from my dad’s side and my mom’s side, were born in the Year of the Horse. I like horses because they are cool and strong. I drew a horse’s head for the Year of the Horse and used my imagination to make it special. I felt very happy while making this artwork. I hope people smile when they see my horse.

Hello, my name is Heidi. I made this piece because nature inspires me–it’s one of my biggest inspirations! The girl in the dress is me, being inspired by the beautiful world around us! By my house, poppies bloom on the hills around this time, and it’s beautiful. You can see mountains in the distance that are just a perfect backdrop, especially when there are clouds. I think nothing is more inspiring than nature, and that's why I made this piece showcasing that.

Hi! I'm Eleanor. This piece of art was inspired by my little sisters because they like to be adventurous and I feel like one can be the sunshine and one can be the water in the ocean. It makes me feel happy because I feel like the sun represents hope and love, and the water symbolizes freedom and movement like my little sisters. I hope it makes other people feel happy too because I feel like the art stands for friendship because there's two people hanging out together, and anything is possible.


The first thing I notice when I look at something is its color. I’ve been doing art for about a year. I mostly draw people but also enjoy drawing realistic things from a reference. I taught myself how to use Procreate by watching other artists online. I always listen to music when I draw. While I was drawing this, I was listening to “The Sound of Silence” by Simon and Garfunkel. The candle makes me feel satisfied at how the light and color blend together to create a realistic image.

There wasn’t really a clear inspiration for this piece, but I’ll try to give a bit of a walk-through. The character is inspired by WOF -Wings Of Fire, which is a dragon book series and my artist persona. I have always had a love for willow and wisteria trees, and love artworks that showcase things like rivers, oceans and waterfalls. The title is partly inspired by the book The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe. This piece makes me feel at peace with the whole… flowy and mystical feel! :3

Hi, my name is Oscar and I love planes, Pokémon and robots. I was inspired to create this because I wanted to make a comic strip about a little robot. The main character is called Artbot and he lives on a harsh junk planet in space but, suddenly a spaceship above explodes and flaming parts fall out of the sky! Since I wanted a happy ending, in the end he gets back up and starts again turning a bad thing into a good thing! Since its volume 1, I'm going to make more comics about robots in space.

I love art and have been studying it since preschool. I spend much of my free time at art classes or drawing in my sketchbook. This art was inspired by the snow we had this year and my love for nature especially highland cows. I hope to be an artist when I grow up.

I really enjoy every aspect of Japanese art and design, from anime to games. It is a dream of mine to become a professional trading card artist when I grow up. This piece reflects that. It is an illustration of one of my original characters, Noodle Dragon, above miso lake, where I imagine he would live.


I am a 12 year middle school student. This piece gave me peaceful. It represents life's journey doesn't have to be challenge, it can be moving forward with ease, clam and purpose.

Hi!! I'm Sheherazade ;D I'm 12 yrs old I absolutely LOVE astronomy and outer space!!!! That's how I got inspired to make this piece. It makes me feel relaxed, at peace, and amazed because how how beautiful it truly is. I know it definitely looks nothing like real space butI hope ya still like it!!

Since I love DELTARUNE, I decided to draw a character from one of the game's AUs (alternate universes). I was inspired to draw him because I love his theme song! Scampton is a character from DELTARUNE: Chapter Rewritten. He's a clown who goes insane after being forgotten in a castle dungeon for a long time.

I was inspired by the book “Impossible Creatures” by Katherine Rundell. It is one of my favorite books. I think that this piece represents how a lot of people want to “fly” and I wanted to remind people that nothing is impossible. This work is one of my best ones given the amount of time I wanted to complete it in, and viewing it fills me with immense delight.

I have always been fascinated by dinosaurs and could never wrap my mind around the fact that these creatures were Earth's first inhabitants. Although they are gone now, their presence is something recognized by all, even 65 million years later. As such, my picture shows a T-rex, the epitome of the dinosaurs. It captures the bold and fierce nature this creature once had, roaming through the jungle with an intimidating aura. This drawing reminds me to always be confident, no matter the challenge.

I get a lot of inspiration from books and nature, so I featured a girl reading in a beautiful landscape. Create, dream, believe has really helped me go above and beyond in things I love. It really makes me feel proud because I know I worked hard to create it, and that I can create something I love like this. If I ever find myself about to give up, all I'll have to say is create, dream, believe.

My name is Madissan, and I enjoy expressing myself through art. I created this drawing as a way to practice and improve my shading skills, which is something I’ve been really interested in learning. I wanted to see how I could use light and dark values to make my artwork look more realistic and detailed. This piece was inspired by my desire to challenge myself and grow as an artist. While working on it, I focused on blending and adding depth to bring the drawing to life. Art makes me feel good.

My main inspirations for art are imagination and fantasy. I love making mystical creatures and they incline me to do what I love: drawing. While I love drawing fantasy animals, I also enjoy drawing still lives and realistic portraits. I added hints of both reality and fantasy through everyday items and magical items, like the socks or the floating musical notes.

This art piece was inspired by one of my favorite stuffed animals, Peanut Butter. My family went to a cow farm where we got to feed adorable highland cows. My favorite cow looked just like the stuffed animal I picked out and named Peanut Butter. I also love sparkles and bright colors. My art has lots of color and sparkle, just like me!

I love to do art because it allows me to use my hands and helps me to focus. Art helps me to feel better by calming my mind. When I do art, I can be creative in making many characters. I enjoy making faces with lots of details. My art is called Dotty Frost. She is named Dotty Frost because she has on Poki dotted and frosted clothing. I love her shiny hair with one braid on each side. At the end of each braid, she has a claw to hold hearts, and other things. Dotty Frost is a kind character.

Hi, my name is Malcolm and I am taking a few of the Outschool drawing classes. This art piece was inspired by a horror game called Poppy Playtime, where all the toys in a toy factory come to life to take revenge on their creators. I enjoy the game very much because it’s not too scary and I find the characters really fun to draw. I really enjoyed making this piece and I hope you enjoy it too.

My name is Hunter and I enjoy drawing anime. I have taken anime classes on Outschool over the years. Some of my favorite classes have been Shine: Drawing Club: Drawing Anime Step by Step for New Beginners with Ms. Roxy, Epic Character Art: Premier Sketching With a Pro Artist with Ms. Roxy, and Anime 101-Anime and Manga Drawing for Beginners with Ms. Harriet. The classes have really helped me improve my drawing skills and I am excited to continue on my art journey.

I was inspired to make this drawing because I wanted to make an overpowered god-like creature for my own personal monster world. As I was making this creation I felt proud because I was noticing a pronounced upgrade in my drawings with detail, colors, and just overall vibrance or projection. So this is what inspired me to make this drawing, and thank you.

I'm Ella-Gayle. I love to read, and I especially enjoy drawing. I have been drawing my whole life. I do digital art as well. My favorite Outschool classes are 'Draw Every Day' with Mr. Dustin and 'Procreate Studio' with Ms. Uli. I call this drawing "Meg", and it was inspired by Disney Princesses. It makes me feel like I am a Disney Character Designer. When I grow up, I want to be a famous artist.


My name is Caroline. My artwork is inspired by NASA’s female astronauts who have helped expand human exploration of space. Their courage inspire me to dream about the future, to become an astronaut and explore outer space, to help humanity better understand the universe. The red and white koi (fish flowing around the astronaut’s helmet ) are known for swimming upstream, representing humanity’s determination to overcome challenges and push beyond limits even when faced with uncertainty.

My artwork is inspired by the koi fish, which represents strength and motivation. It reminds me to keep going even when life is hard. The calm movement of the fish brings peace and shows me to trust the journey. With faith, I believe God is guiding me. This piece reflects staying strong, growing through challenges, and moving forward with courage.


Art is a very calming thing for me. Whenever I am feeling stressed or anxious, I sit down and do some sketching. Recently, whenever I'm sitting on my own, I start thinking about the lighting in the room and how the light from the window reaches everything and makes all of it feel so beautiful. I find myself really wanting to make a painting of it.

Hi, I’m Ella, and I drew this chameleon because I love unique animals, especially ones that can change and adapt. I left it without color so we can imagine together what colors it might be changing into. To me, it represents people who have hidden talents. Sometimes you don’t see what someone can do until they choose to share it, especially through art. This reminds me that everyone has something special inside, and when we express it, our true colors shine.

I am an avid writer and artist with a passion specifically for animals. This piece was inspired by a book I want to write following the first two leaders of a wolf pack called the Rose Kingdom. Over the course of this drawing I grew even more attached to these two characters and even spent hours meticulously fussing over details just so I could do them justice. Now that the piece is finished, I look at it as one of the best pieces I've ever created and the characters as some of my favorites.

My name is Wolf and for the last few months I’ve been learning how to draw more realism art. When I was able to capture the style that I enjoyed, I transferred it digitally. This piece represents my growth as an artist. A long time ago, if you asked me to draw something realistic, I would have said no. Now I challenge myself and embrace new styles.

Hello! I'm Lucy and I love dinosaurs. I love Art, specifically paleoart, too. I wanted my art piece to look like you just took a picture of a dinosaur, who might be scared of a volcano. I want the piece to make you feel like you've been swept away by some mysterious force that took you to the Mesozoic era, and instead of thinking that everything is in chaos, all you can think is "Wow, the wonders of Earth".

I really enjoyed making this self portrait. It reflects the most dignified version of myself, and really speaks to the responsibilities a hold. I painted this piece with acrylic markers, and I spent a whole afternoon on it rather than doing my Homework…don’t worry I still got the homework done. :D what do you think? Worthy of a vote?

I always wondered how a female demon would react to seeing a young child. From the many anime I have watched some react in disgust and some in curiosity. I love demonology and seeing how people depict different sins and or entities. This is my rendition of you as the young child looking up to a demon.

My name is Emmi and I’m a self taught artist who likes drawing graphite portraits. As you can see, the girl in this portrait is lonely and surrounded by darkness and shadows. But what inspired me about this and because I made this is that she looks brave and her eyes are twinkling, symbolizing how she likes the darkness. As an introvert, sometimes I can feel this way. But it’s not a bad thing. This portrait, when I look at it, looks like how I am sometimes; the loneliness can make me be brave.

So I like to draw a lot of buildings, ranging from small lodges, to big skyscrapers. I got inspired by all the books I read (I read, a LOT), and decided to make a Storybook row about the fairytales. It makes me feel kinda' magical you know, like all these little details that make it feel alive.

Hi! I am James, and I like to express myself through art. I drew this specific piece a few years back for a project at my school. It is supposed to be an artistic self-representation, filled with patterns and objects that I like or that are important to me. Once the outline was completed, I separated the head into sections (some are special shapes). Then I slowly and carefully filled the entire large page with my artwork, using a pen to draw over it all again a second time! I'm proud of my work.

My name is Evie. I’m homeschooled and I have been taking art class for 3 years with Ms. Z. I chose to draw penguins and title my piece Love In All Things, because God gave love to all creatures great and small. You can see that penguins love each other because they look after their chicks. It makes me feel good, because God loves penguins and so He must love us. It also reminds me of God’s beauty and grace.

Why I drew this picture of Kirby, Meta Knight, Bandana Waddle Dee, King Dedede, Marx, and Parasol Waddle Dee is because it reminds me of my childhood playing all different kinds of Kirby on the Wii, GameCube, and SNES. I always played with my mom so it is a thing with us to play Kirby cause we love it. Marx is my favorite character because I think he resembles me in his wild goofy way. Plus I'm short and good at balancing on balls.


When You stand in an art museum you get Immersed in cultures, feelings, and different time periods. When l look at an art piece l get to feel something from the artist perspective. I think it’s amazing to see peoples dreams, get brought to life on a canvas. That’s my Favorite part of the art museum. I love drawing. The moment when my pencil touches the paper I have the freedom to create whatever I want and to truly express myself.

My name is Parker and I made this piece based off of a musician I really like named Marino. In some of his videos he calls himself the homeless marshmallow so that's why I named the piece this. He is someone that inspires me and that's why I made this piece.

I am six years old and I love to create through drawing, painting and model making. I was inspired by Jim Dine to create this painting for my mother using mixed media like tissue paper, crayon and paints. The painting makes me feel happy as it uses the colors I love and the heart is full of love.
Whether your kid is just starting their creative journey or has a project ready to go, you’ll find classes that meet them where they are and bring out their best.
Learners ages 6 to 18 in the United States, United Kingdom, (England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland only), Australia and Canada (excluding Quebec) (see showcase rules for regional participation limits and award eligibility details) can enter if their family has an active Outschool Membership or enrollment. New to Outschool? Become a member today!
Not at all! The Visual Arts Showcase is open to every eligible learner, whether they’re new to creating art or already taking classes. They don’t need to be enrolled in an Outschool art class to participate. What matters most is their creativity, effort, and artistic voice.
Log in to your Outschool account and fill out the form above. Upload a high-resolution image or a 1-minute video of your learner’s artwork (vertical 9x16 preferred; max 150MB) and add the artwork’s title plus a note about why your learner chose it. If you have trouble uploading, check our troubleshooting tips or contact Outschool Support for help.
Make sure to enter using the parent email linked to your Outschool account. If a teacher invited you to the Showcase, add their profile link so we can thank them. Submitting for more than one learner? Fill out a new form for each.
Artwork should connect to the theme, ‘Something That Inspires Me,’ and must be original and created by the learner. If your learner uses any material they did not create themselves, it must be clearly changed into something new and original, not just copied or lightly edited. AI tools may not be used to create any part of the artwork. Learn more about our submission guidelines here.
Our team reviews your learner’s artwork to make sure it meets the showcase rules and submission guidelines. This could take up to a week. You’ll get an email once it’s in the Showcase. Keep an eye on this page for updates. Entries will appear here when ‘Showcase Favorite’ voting begins on or around March 13.
Submissions can’t be edited once they’ve been sent, so be sure to review your upload and entry form carefully before submitting. Each learner can have only one entry in the Showcase, and judges will review only one submission per participant.
Outschool’s teacher judges review entries for creativity and originality. Learners submit their work in one of two categories: Physical Art (e.g., drawing or painting) or Digital Art (e.g., animation or digital illustration). One finalist is chosen in each age group for each category. Showcase Favorite voting happens on the Showcase page and is open to those aged 18 or older. Public voting for Showcase Favorite is open only to individuals who are legal residents of jurisdictions where participation is lawful. Notwithstanding the foregoing, residents of Canada are not eligible to participate in the public voting portion of the Contest.
Finalists are featured in the live virtual event, and the Showcase Favorite winner is decided by public vote. Entries from Canada are eligible for judging and award selection in all categories except for public voting for the Showcase Favorite award.
The live virtual Showcase will be hosted by Outschool on April 25. It’s a free celebration of the finalists and their artwork, featuring judges and moments highlighting each artist’s creative process and inspiration. Families can join to view the artwork, hear directly from the artists, and celebrate their creativity together.
Two Grand Prize winners, one in each category, each receive a $500 USD Outschool Gift Card, a $500 USD Amazon Gift Card, a featured placement on a Times Square digital billboard, and a one-year Outschool Membership at the $70 USD monthly tier. Finalists receive a $250 USD Outschool Gift Card, and the Showcase Favorite winner receives a $250 USD Outschool Gift Card and a $250 USD Amazon Gift Card. Finalists are announced on April 20, and Grand Prize winners will be announced live at the Showcase event on April 25. Prizes are sent by email after the contest concludes. All prizes are stated in US dollars (USD) or the equivalent amount in local currency, depending on the jurisdiction of residence.