Students recognized for art ahead of Gumtree Festival

TUPELO, MISS. (WCBI) – Some of the top middle school and high school artists were recognized for their work Monday evening in Tupelo.

The annual “Gumtree Scholarship Art Contest” featured artists from across Northeast Mississippi.

Awards were presented to the winners at the Gumtree Museum of Art.

Students took home merit prizes, and the top winners received scholarship money that can be used when they go to college.

“I hope these competitions and scholarship money will give them encouragement to pursue art as a career. I never thought I ‘d be able to use my bachelor’s of fine arts from Mississippi State,” said Belle Naugher, Director of the Gumtree Museum of Art.

“I wasn’t really expecting anything. I kind of just did art all my life. It was just nice to get an award for it,” said THS Senior Genesis Guzman, who was the top scholarship winner.

The scholarship winners will get their prizes this weekend at the 47th annual Gumtree Art Festival in Tupelo.

The Tupelo Elvis Presley Fan Club and the Roy Turner and Elaine Dundy Endowment Fund helped make the awards and scholarships possible.