MIDDLEBURG – A Middleburg High school senior will have one of her art pieces hung at the U.S. Capitol after winning a national contest.

Kamryn Wright plans on attending the University of South Florida for Architecture. Her art was picked from more than 50 other entries in the district at the 2022 Congressional Art Competition.

Wright said she was speechless at first when she found out she won. It involved gathering her family for the announcement.

“It all settled in and it was just so exciting,” Wright said. “The day I found out, they released it in the morning. (My family) was at work, so we wanted to wait until the evening so all of us could see it at the same time.”

An art teacher recommended the competition and Wright ran with it. She said she submitted pieces to the Clay County Fair, but this was her first national contest.

“He hands me the flier and he goes, ‘Why not try it out?’” she said.

Wright started drawing from a very young age and used materials like cardboard for projects. Her piece, “Loyal Hunter” portrays a Labrador, which recalled duck hunting with her father.

“When I was younger, my dad and I would duck hunt in our backyard … with our lab. He is a yellow lab, but a yellow lab is kind of hard to draw,” Wright said with a giggle.

Scratch-art is printer paper covered with paint or ink, where the artist carves away at the ink. Wright used a knife for her piece, which is her first attempt at scratch art. Rather than making dark marks on light surfaces, the scratch artist does the opposite, Wright explained.

“This is totally in reverse,’’ she said of scratch art. “You’re drawing all the light areas … it’s one of my favorite mediums.”

Graduation looms for Wright and other seniors. But she will attend a reception in Washington, D.C., this summer and said she is happy to represent Middleburg on a national level.

“Being able to see my artwork in something as big as the Capitol is so surreal, there’s so many emotions to feel about it. I would have never believed my artwork would take me that far,” Wright said. “I’ve been drawing ever since I could hold a pencil in my hand. I’ve been drawing my entire life.”