“Don’t Box Me In,” by Morgan Murphy. “It’s human nature to want to connect with other people . . . to be a part of the group . . . that’s why we’re always trying to categorize people. . . . My sculpture is a box holding together a bunch of random wooden objects. I painted the box and most of the objects a neutral khaki color. . . . By painting everything the same color, you really notice all the different angles and shapes of each object. Then I added a hint of color. . . This is to remind viewers that it’s okay to be different from the rest of the crowd.”

I don’t consider myself creative.

With words? Maybe. But not with drawing, or painting, or sculpture, or digital media.

Yesterday, I had the privilege of meeting several young people who definitely are creative. They were some of the winners of the 19th Annual Diverse-City Art Competition, presented by Diversity Awareness Partnership (DAP) with sponsorship from Wells-Fargo Advisors.

The students, from kindergarten through the 12th grade, were invited to create works of art that expressed what living in a diverse city means to them. They received prizes in each of four age brackets.

The young artists presented their works at SqWires Restaurant in Lafayette Square. Each piece will be auctioned off at DAP’s Annual Diversity Dinner November 9 to raise money for the group’s diversity education efforts.

“The artwork submitted this year is nothing short of amazing,” DAP Executive Director Reena Hajat Carroll told me. “It is not only beautiful, gallery-quality work, but it also allows us to see what diversity means through students’ eyes.”

And, near and dear to my heart, through the students’ words–which you can read below.

Adrianne Poston, K-2nd Grade, Everybody Has a Favorite Color
“My painting is about everybody having a favorite color. It is a paint can with paint spilled out of it in all different colors, shapes, and sizes.”

Brooke Elston, 3rd-5th Grade
“It has a picture of the Arch. It has words that say “St. Louis, where everyone is welcome.” Instead of a sky, the sky has flags from all over the world.”

Morgan Murphy, 6th-8th Grade, Meet Me In St. Louis
In my film, I wanted to celebrate all those cultural influences you can find in our city. The main character is a girl, who looks very much like me, and she’s daydreaming about traveling the world. I used only a hint of color in each frame. Each . . . color represents a tradition from another country that has been brought to St. Louis. . . . All these cultural influences “meet” in St. Louis.

Abigail Oster, 9th-12th Grade, Hand in Hand
This piece shows nine hands spelling out the word “diversity” in sign language. These hands were created myself. Behind the Hands is the St. Louis Arch (also created by me) with the text “St. Louis includes Everyone.” The background is a blue gradient with many pictures depicting diversity in St. Louis overlapping the gradient at a low opacity. The submission was entirely created in Adobe Illustrator.