A Killeen High School freshman earned a prestigious national art award called the Silver Key.
Killeen ISD Assistant Art Director Morganne Davies said the honor is considered the oldest and most prestigious creative award for youth in the country.
Kyleah Williams said she was shocked and honored to receive emailed confirmation that she was a Silver Key winner.
“I was just at home drawing when I saw the email from Scholastic (Art Competition),” she said.
“I called my mom at work. I called my grandparents. I said, ‘I won silver,’” she said, recalling the happy surprise.
Art teacher Kim Squires said Williams is a gifted artist and acknowledged that she regularly works on personal projects outside her Art 2 class at KHS.
The award-winning piece, titled “The Man in Yellow and Blue,” is a digital portrait she created with a software program based on her own original sketch.
Fun and bright are what Williams goes for in her personal artwork.
“I did the drawing in bright colors,” she said, showing darkness in the subject’s eyes contrasting with overall lightness.
“It shows the brightness of day and the cold of the shadows. It’s fun, nice to look at,” she said.
Williams said she’s drawn a lot of portraits, but took a break from that art style, then returned to it.
The dot work in this recent award-winning piece illustrates the artist’s affinity for comics. Spider Man provided some inspiration.
“I like shadows and depths,” she said, noting that she is working on more pieces for more competitions.
“I like how you can be creatives,” said Williams of her attraction to art. “It can lead to a show or even a whole career.”
The award notification letter she received from the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers praises the “outstanding merit in originality, skill, and the emergence of your personal voice and vision.”
The Silver Key dates to 1923. Past winners include Stephen King, Amanda Gorman, Joyce Carol Oates and Andy Warhol.
