Psi Iota Xi presents Senior Art Awards

The Zeta Mu Chapter of Psi Iota Xi presented two $500 Senior Art Awards to area high school seniors on Thursday, March 6, 2026.

The award ceremony was held at Jasper Arts’ First Thursday Reception in honor of Youth Art Month at the gallery in the Thyen-Clark Cultural Center.

Kynlee Jackson of Southridge High School received the $500 award for two-dimensional art for her watercolor, Horangi.

“I chose the tiger for my watercolor because of how fun it would be to capture a cat in water. I love tigers and painting with watercolors so I thought I could use both of these in one project,” Kynlee said. “I tried an abstract version before I chose this piece, but it became muddy too quickly, so I switched to this peaceful and clean-cut piece.” 

Kynlee is the daughter of Chad Jackson and Megan Hupp, and her art teacher is Amber Barclay.

Vanessa Padilla of Jasper High School received the $500 award for three-dimensional art for her plaster molding and painting work entitled The Strongest Knot of Faith and Culture.

“I chose to make a mold of my hands in a praying position to signify my devotion to the Catholic faith,” Vanessa said. “I am Mexican so on one side I painted the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe who is strongly tied to Mexico and is often recognized as the queen of Mexico. Our Lady is also the figure who converted thousands of indigenous people  to Catholicism in Mexico. She is the strong knot that ties my culture to my religion. On the other side I painted the crucifixion of Jesus as a daily reminder of the love that Jesus has for us.” 

Vanessa is the daughter of José Padilla and Abigail Silva, and her art teacher is Andrea Fleck.

All of the students’ artwork will be on display at the Jasper Arts Gallery, 100 Third Avenue in Jasper, throughout March.

Psi Iota Xi is a philanthropic service sorority for adult women with the mission of promoting art, literature, music, and speech & hearing. The Zeta Mu Chapter sponsors a free summer language and literacy camp for Dubois County children, is a gold-level sponsor of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, provides college scholarships for speech and hearing students, and supports numerous other local causes. Women interested in joining may contact any member or President Leisa Lowrey at zetamupsiiotaxi@gmail.com.