(CEDAR HILL, TEXAS) For the first time in recent history, two Cedar Hill ISD scholars qualified for the UIL Art Contest last month in San Marcos.
Senior Tyanne Ugorji and junior Tatyana Overton qualified. To put the accomplishment in context, only 2,300 art pieces out of 33,300 submitted pieces became state qualifiers.
Ugorji, who qualified for State as a junior at South Oak Cliff, transferred to CHHS for its Advanced Placement (AP) Art course. Her self-portrait was one of just 163 art pieces to win a gold seal. That places Ugorji in the top seven percent of high school artists in Texas.
“My art piece was about learning to love yourself,” said Ugorji, who plans to study Art at Dallas College next semester. “It gave me a lot of confidence and kept me going.”
Ugorji said she’ll spend the summer working on her portfolio.
Her self-portrait will travel to galleries throughout the state until November, at which point it will be returned to her.
Overton made her state debut with a digital print that she described as “a visual representation of my mental health.”
“I was able to show a lot of things that I felt,” said Overton, who attended Waterford Oaks Elementary School and Bessie Coleman Middle School before coming to CHHS.
She plans to return to State next year as a senior and credits Ugorji with helping her prepare for State this spring.
