4-H DOG ARTISTIC EXPRESSIONS STATEWIDE CONTESTS
Welcome to a brand new Statewide Contest! If you love all things K-9 related this contest is for you! You will have the opportunity to enter dog related art items in the following categories: Crafts/Mixed Media, Drawing, Painting, Poster, Photography, Digital Art (includes digitally enhanced photography), and Sewing. All items entered must be created by the 4-H member, dog ownership is not required.
Deadline to register entries will be May 15, 2025 online with our Robeson County Extension Office at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeIiyB_1786Mskln1DTmbjO96cTfo-2KlHHxLtlmGD_KTZDSQ/viewform?usp=sharing. Entries must be received by close of business May 26, 2025 at the Robeson County Extension Office, 455 Caton Road, Lumberton, NC 28360.
The Awards display will be at State Presentation Day during 4-H Congress. The 4-H Agent will pick up the entries and bring them back to the County after Congress. These contests are open to all North Carolina 4-H members that are actively enrolled in 4-H Online.
General Rules
All 4-H youth are eligible to participate in the appropriate age category. Each participant must be enrolled and approved in 4-H Online for the current year. Ages are 4-H age, as of January 1st of the current year.
Cloverbuds-ages 5-7–receive comments; non-competitive.
Juniors–ages 8-11
Intermediates–ages 12-14
Seniors–ages 15-18
Regulations and Entries
Youth may enter one article per contest category. Entries must be the work of the participant and must relate to dogs. Entries that are not made by the participant will be disqualified. Adult supervision is permissible.
Awards plus top three ribbons in the Junior, Intermediate, and Senior age divisions will be awarded. Cloverbud participants will not be ranked but will be evaluated and receive participation awards. Entries will be judged by at least two judges. Ties will be broken starting with the judging criteria with the highest point value and continuing on in descending order. If ties are still present, multiple prizes of the same rank will be awarded. Two Judges’ Choice awards will be given overall.
All entries must include a label/tag firmly attached with the following information:
Name:
Age:
Age Division:
County of participation:
Category:
Brief Description: (examples: colored pencil drawing, decorated dog collar,
sewn dog toy, etc)
Attach this label to the back of flat pieces; pin, clip or otherwise attach to three-dimensional pieces (crafts, sewn items, etc.) Failure to include all this information will result in a scoring penalty of 15 points. You are responsible for entering the correct category.
Categories for 2025 include:
Crafts/Mixed Media
Drawing
Painting
Poster
Photography
Digital Art (includes digitally enhanced photography)
Sewing
Entries should have no glass (too fragile, safety issue), no frames, and should not feature fan art of licensed characters (no Paw Patrol, Disney, Snoopy, Bluey, etc), nor any AI-generated art. These infractions will result in the entry being disqualified.
CONTEST CATEGORIES
1. DOG CRAFTS/MIXED MEDIA CONTEST
Objectives
To provide an educational opportunity for participants to exhibit their craft skills pertaining to a dog project and to encourage participants to explore and develop economic alternatives for themselves and their dog.
Regulations
Craft items include those suitable for a dog project, including functional accessories for the dog, trainer/owner, kennel (for example, collars, leashes, harnesses, crates, crate tags, number holders, grooming boxes, etc.) or decorative or informative items (for example sculptures, wall hangings, and dioramas). Paint by numbers, dot art, and art done by a pattern fall in this category. Collages, mosaics, and other combinations of drawing, painting and preprinted materials, stenciling, etc are included here.
Captions are allowed.
There is no size limit.
Media. Craft items can be made from a single media or a combination of media. Examples of types of media are wood, clay, resin, plastic, metal, paper (e.g. papier-mâché), seeds, pasta, leather, beads, and textiles (e.g., knitting, needlepoint, macramé, weaving, etc.).
Evaluation Criteria
Creativity, overall design 35 points
Construction method and finish (wise choice, workmanship) 25 points
Degree of Difficulty 20 points
Total appearance 20 points
Total 100 points
Must have a minimum score of 60 points to place.
2. DOG DRAWING CONTEST
Objectives
To encourage the 4-H member to broaden his or her horizons and utilize creative talent within the Dog Project and to increase awareness of the Dog Project through drawing exhibitions.
Regulations
There is no size limitation on drawings.
Media Used. Pencil, chalk, charcoal, pen and ink, pastels, etchings or markers. Cloverbud members, however, may use any drawing medium of their choice excluding a paint-type medium.
Presentation. All work must be matted or mounted using suitable materials. (Foam core posterboard provides a sturdy backing for projects and helps prevent damage and movement while displayed.) Metal is NOT a suitable mount. Captions are not permitted on the front of the drawing and if used will be penalized. Entries with frames will be disqualified.
Evaluation Criteria
Composition, Balance, Harmony, and Overall Design 40 points
Use of Materials and Appropriate Media Selection 20 points
Skill Level, Degree of Difficulty 30 points
Completed Appearance and Neatness 10 points
Total 100 points
Must have a minimum score of 60 points to place.
Infractions: Entries not conforming to the contest guidelines will be penalized by having points deducted from their total score as follows:
● Caption 10 points
● Use of wrong media 30 points
● Incorrect mounting or matting 10 points
3. DOG PAINTING CONTEST
Objectives
To encourage the 4-H member to apply artistic talent within the Dog Project, increase knowledge and skill in dog-related painting, to learn the value of developing visual exhibits in areas of specific interest.
Regulations
There is no size limitation on paintings.
Media Used. Watercolor, acrylic, or oil. Juniors may also use tempera paints. Cloverbud members may use any paint medium of their choice excluding a drawing-type medium.
Presentation. All watercolors must be matted with a suitable matting board. All painting other than watercolors must be done on proper painting support, e.g. canvas and canvas panels. Captions are not permitted on the front of the painting and if used will be penalized. Entries with frames will be disqualified.
Evaluation Criteria
Composition, Balance, Harmony, and Overall Design 40 points
Use of Materials and Appropriate Media Selection 20 points
Skill Level, Degree of Difficulty 30 points
Completed Appearance and Neatness 10 points
Total 100 points
Must have a minimum score of 60 points to place.
Infractions: Entries not conforming to the contest guidelines will be penalized by having points deducted from their total score as follows:
● Caption 10 points
● Incorrect painting support 10 points
4. DOG POSTER CONTEST
Objectives
To provide a medium for 4-H youth to visually show their interest in dogs, enable 4-H youth to improve their skills in linking words and visuals into an appealing unit, to learn the process of developing good design and experience the need for careful craftsmanship and neatness, and to increase public awareness of the 4-H Dog Project through illustrative displays.
Regulations
Size. Each entry must be a minimum of 600 square inches. Standard poster board meets that criteria. A one-inch border is recommended. Tri-fold poster boards are acceptable.
Materials. Posters must not contain three-dimensional materials that protrude more than one-quarter of an inch from the surface of the poster board.
Topics. The poster can depict any topic related to the Dog Project (for example: care, training, health, nutrition, psychology, breed, history of breeds, anatomy, careers, safety, reproduction, youth leadership in project, colors, and markings).
Content. Effective posters should focus attention on one idea that encourages people to stop, look, read, and remember. Posters should include a combination of illustrations and captions that effectively promote one main idea.
Evaluation Criteria
Information given and idea expressed (theme, simplicity, and originality) 50 points
Art, design and lettering (pleasing composition, attractive, dynamic, eye-catching, original, neat, easily read lettering, and use of color), appropriate border 30 points
Construction (materials: texture, shape, size, durability) 20 points
Total 100 points
Must have a minimum score of 60 points to place.
Infractions: Entries not conforming to the contest guidelines will be penalized by having points deducted from their total score as follows:
● Size (too small) 10 points
● 3D objects that protrude > 1⁄4 inch 15 points
5. DOG PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST
The Photography Contest is for Standard photography. Digitally Enhanced/Altered (DE) photographs that have been significantly altered using computer software now falls into the Digital Art category.
Use solely of common photographic techniques such as contrast enhancement, adjustment of lightness/darkness, color balancing and cropping do not qualify a photograph for the digital art category.
Objectives: To encourage dog-related photography by 4-H youth, help 4-H youth gain self-confidence and develop lifelong photographic skills and abilities, to increase knowledge of photography in general and specifically as it applies to dogs, to learn the value of organizing and developing visual exhibits in a specific area of interest, and to increase awareness of the 4-H Dog Project through the use of photographic displays.
Regulations
Size. There is no size limitation on photographs.
Mounting. All photos are to be mounted on a firm backing such as foam board that is the SAME SIZE as the photograph. No prints on metal or canvas. Photos that are not mounted will be disqualified. Matting borders will be penalized.
Color. Photos may be black and white or full color and will be judged equally.
Edges. White edges are to be trimmed from all photos and if not trimmed will be
penalized.
Framing. No frames or glass permitted. Photos with frames or glass will be disqualified.
Captions. Captions are NOT permitted on the front of the photograph and if used will be penalized. A date imprint on a photo does not count as a caption. Entry may be titled on the back of the mount board
Evaluation Criteria
Composition camera angle, close to subject, pleasing to look at, elements balanced, simple background 40 points
Technical Quality, depth of field, lens artifacts, focal length, sharp clear image, exposure, lighting, close enough to subject 35 points
Creativity, interesting to look at, one central idea, idea shown clearly, experimentation, subject spontaneity 15 points
Overall appearance, neatness, and mounting 10 points
Total 100 points
Infractions: Entries not conforming to the regulations will be penalized by having points deducted from their total score.
●Captions 10 points
●Incorrect mounting, being matted, having border 10 points
6. DOG SEWING CONTEST
Objectives: To provide an educational opportunity for participants to exhibit their sewing skills pertaining to a dog project, and to encourage participants to explore and develop economic alternatives for themselves and their dog.
Regulations: Items entered in the Sewing Contest must have a “dog theme” and may be decorative or functional. Participants must have used thread to join or attach fabric pieces together with stitches. Articles without stitching or that are glued together will be disqualified. For clarity: crocheting, needlepoint, knitting, weaving, macramé, etc. belong in the craft category.
Evaluation Criteria
Suitability of materials used (serviceability, durability, appropriateness) 15 points
Creativity 10 points
Construction methods and finishes (wise choice, workmanship) 25 points
Degree of difficulty 20 points
Total appearance 30 points
Total 100 points
Must have a minimum score of 60 points to place.
7. DIGITAL ART CONTEST
Objectives: To encourage the 4-H member to develop and apply artistic talent and digital skills within the Dog Project, increase knowledge and skills in dog related art and art manipulation software, to learn the value of developing visual exhibits in areas of specific interest.
Regulations
Digitally enhanced/altered photography falls into this category. Original art done entirely within art creation/editing programs also fall into this category. Text and captions are allowed.
There is no size limitation.
For exhibiting purposes, art cannot be submitted digitally. It must be physically printed. Due to this limitation, no animation is accepted.
Presentation. All entries must be mounted for proper support on a firm backing (such as foam board) the same size as the print. Entries that are not mounted will be disqualified.
Evaluation Criteria
Digital Artistry: assesses the contribution of the digital component to the overall image and includes the use of impact, creativity, originality, design, use of color and value, focal points. 40 points
Composition 30 points
Technical Quality 20 points
Overall appearance, neatness and mounting 10 points
Total 100 points
Must have a minimum of 60 points to place
Infractions: Entries not meeting guidelines will be penalized by points deducted.
●Incorrect mounting 10 points
For Questions about this program please contact Shea Ann DeJarnette, 4-H Extension Agent at Shea_Ann_DeJarnette@ncsu.edu or (910) 671-3276.
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