Devan Budd, a fifth-grader at Pearl City Elementary School, will be honored for winning an international art contest for children May 31 at the Honolulu Museum of Art School.
Earlier this year Devan, 11, won the top prize — the judge’s pick — in the 25th annual Children’s Art Competition run by the Mokichi Okada Association Museum of Art in Japan for her drawing, titled "Racer." The oil pastel drawing, which she created in the spring of 2013, depicts two sprinters leaping over hurdles on a track, with a crowd in the background enjoying the action.
"I got the idea from a picture that my teacher (Roy Otaguro) showed me," Devan said. "First I colored with white, and then I colored with all the other colors. It was hard."
Her drawing was chosen from among more than 450,000 entries from 11 countries that are considered annually for the contest, one of the largest children’s art contests in the world. District branches of MOA begin receiving entries each fall, picking the best pieces at the local level and sending them to Japan for final judging.
"Devan’s drawing was among a couple thousand best-of-show entries that went to Japan, and she won the judge’s pick, which is above the gold and silver," said Otaguro, arts and culture director for MOA Hawaii, who teaches Devan at Pearl City Elementary’s after-school art program. "It’s the first time any American has reached that. … We’ve taken silver and gold before, but never the judge’s pick."
Devan is a dedicated artist, taking an after-school art class and producing artwork almost daily. Her mother, Lynne Budd, said, "My entire kitchen and my upstairs hallway is filled with her artwork, and I still have a closet full of artwork that hasn’t been hung yet."
Devan may have gotten some of her talent and devotion from her great-grandmother, an artist whose paintings decorate her grandparents’ home.
Devan said she prefers painting above other media. "We did some sculpture a few months ago, but I think that’s the only time I’m going to do it."
She also likes to do abstract art, but the assignment the day she created "Racer" was to depict people, she said.
The Mokichi Okada Association Museum of Art, which is in Atami, Japan, was founded by followers of Mokichi Okada, a religious leader, jeweler and art collector who promoted the use of natural farming techniques. MOA Hawaii also sponsors after-school art programs at six Oahu elementary schools — Aina Haina, Waialae, Maemae, Nuuanu, Momilani and Pearl City — and runs wellness centers in Honolulu and in Japan and other countries.
Devan’s drawing was displayed around the world as part of the contest and recently returned to Hawaii. She will receive a trophy and other honors at the Honolulu Museum of Art School on May 31 at 10 a.m. Her art, along with district winners from the contest, will be on display.
Winning, she said, made her feel "really, really, really happy."
