PSHS junior wins art competition, piece to hang in U.S. Capitol for year

Philip Simmons High School junior Eden Tumey has earned top honors in the annual Congressional Art Competition, winning for South Carolina’s District 1 and securing a summer trip to Washington, D.C. Her artwork will be unveiled in the U.S. Capitol, where it will hang for a year.

Tumey is an Advanced Placement Art student and officer in her school’s National Art Honor Society. She is involved in community projects like Habitat for Humanity’s Playhouse initiative, and her artwork draws inspiration from her Lowcountry roots and her passion for Southern wildlife and conservation.

“The title of the piece is ‘Dawn in the Cutover,’ and my idea for the piece came from my own German Short Hair,” Tumey said. “Since my portfolio theme is the different facets of a predator, Greta (my dog) was perfect for the role.”

Greta, her family’s hunting dog, became both subject and inspiration, though capturing her likeness came with challenges. Without reference photos, Tumey relied on memory and a handful of images to complete the piece, a process she said pushed her creatively.

“Each hair on the body is carved out with an exacto knife over a base coat of soft pastel,” she said. “For the majority of the piece, I used nothing but soft pastels and my fingers… In the end… she is without a doubt the piece I can happily say I had the most fun making, and of course, my favorite.”