1/17/2010 10:59:00 PM Honoring Martin Luther King Jr.:
Prescott Valley teen wins 2nd place in ASU's annual contest
Les Stukenberg/The Daily Courier
Cory Walker, formerly a freshman at Bradshaw Mountain High School, now attending Prescott Valley Charter School in Prescott Valley, won second place in the secondary poster category in Arizona State University's annual Martin Luther King Jr. poster-essay contest.
At the young age of 15, Prescott Valley Charter School freshman Cory Walker is a published artist.
His pencil drawing took second place in the annual Arizona State University Martin Luther King Jr. poster-essay contest.
Walker started his high school education at Bradshaw Mountain High School. He transferred to the Prescott Valley Charter School in November.
It was while he was attending BMHS, and enrolled in Cynthia Hancock's Art 1 class, that Walker created his poster.
The assignment from Hancock was to draw something representative of Dr. King and the sacrifices he made.
Walker drew a person looking into a puddle. In the puddle, and surrounded by an American flag, is a U.S. Marine looking to the future. He titled his picture "The sacrifices we make today can change the world tomorrow."
Hancock has entered her students' artwork in the ASU contest for several years.
While the contest honors Martin Luther King, it is not about him specifically.
"The contest is about how you can impact your community with the resources you have. It is a reflective competition," Hancock said.
"In no way is this a contest about Dr. King or black history. It is all about stewardship and how you can give back to the community, which is always a good message. The contest gets kids to think about what they have to offer."
As an added bonus, Hancock said, ASU publishes the winning entries as bookmarks that will be available at all Maricopa County libraries.
"As a high school student, Cory is already published," she said.
In addition to having his work made into a bookmark, Walker received a $100 savings bond.
Walker's parents are artistically inclined. His mother Colleen has a degree in graphic design. She has passed her knowledge on to her son, who has learned how to use PhotoShop and InDesign.
"I have been drawing since I was in kindergarten," said Walker, whose favorite art medium is colored pencils.
Walker is interested in a career programming and designing computer games.
A quiet young man, Walker finds his second place win in the poster contest amusing.
"I was flunking art when I entered the contest," he said.
Walker's poster and the other winning entries can be seen at http://asunews.asu.edu/gallery_20100105_mlkposters.
Reader Comments
Posted: Monday, January 18, 2010
Article comment by:
No name provided
Great job Cory!
Posted: Monday, January 18, 2010
Article comment by:
a fan
Well done, Cory - that's something to be proud of!
Posted: Monday, January 18, 2010
Article comment by:
Picasso
How can one flunk art? Who can really say one's art style is not up to par? Anyways, the picture looks great and has a great meaning to it. Good job!
