Artists have until 4:30 p.m. Aug. 1 to submit artwork for the current Oklahoma Waterfowl Stamp design competition.
The colorful wood duck is the subject for this year's prestigious contest. The winning artwork will grace the 2019-20 Oklahoma Waterfowl Stamp, which is purchased by waterfowl hunters in the state and by collectors nationwide. The winning artist will receive $1,200.
This design competition has been conducted by the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation since 1980.
Judges will consider each artwork in terms of anatomical accuracy, artistic composition and suitability for printing. Any background habitat depicted must be typical of an Oklahoma locale.
Entries are limited to one artwork per artist, and a $20 nonrefundable entry fee is required. Mailed entries should be sent to Duck Stamp Competition Coordinator, Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, P.O. Box 53465, Oklahoma City, OK 73152. Ground deliveries should be made to 2100 NE 37th St., Oklahoma City, OK 73111.
While the Wildlife Department no longer produces prints of the winning artwork, a few limited-edition prints from previous years are still available for sale.
For complete contest rules, go to www.wildlifedepartment.com/hunting/species/waterfowl/duck-stamp-program/rules. For more contest information, call (405) 521-3855.
In related news, the 2018-19 Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp – commonly known as the Federal Duck Stamp – went on sale last week. The new Federal Duck Stamp and its younger sibling, the Junior Duck Stamp, debuted at a special event in Hanover, Md.
Painted by three-time winning Federal Duck Stamp Contest artist Robert Hautman of Delano, Minnesota, the new Duck Stamp will raise millions of dollars for habitat conservation to benefit wildlife and the American people.
The Federal Duck Stamp plays a critically important role in wildlife conservation. Since 1934, sales of this stamp have raised more than $1 billion to protect more than 5.7 million acres of wetlands habitat on national wildlife refuges around the nation.
The new Duck Stamps are available for purchase online, at many sporting goods and retail stores, and some post offices and national wildlife refuges. Find all buying options at http://www.fws.gov/birds/get-involved/duck-stamp/buy-duck-stamp.php.
The Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest is the culmination of a year-long educational program that helps students learn about wetlands and waterfowl conservation, explore their natural world and create a painting or drawing of a duck, goose or swan as their “visual term paper” to demonstrate what they learned.
The winning art at a national contest held in April each year is made into a stamp the Service sells for $5 to conservationists, educators, students and the public. Proceeds support conservation education. Since the first Junior Duck Stamps went on sale in 1993, well over $1 million has been raised, which has been re-invested in this unique conservation arts and science education program.
Learn more about the Federal and Junior Duck Stamps at https://www.fws.gov/birds/get-involved/duck-stamp.php.