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2025 Creative Arts Festival Entry Information

creative arts man

By Jackie Stevenson, Public Affairs Specialist

2025 Creative Arts Festival Entry Information

National Veterans Creative Arts Program and Competition

VA medical facilities incorporate creative arts into their therapy programs to further the rehabilitation for both inpatients and outpatients. This annual competition recognizes the progress and recovery made through that therapy and raises the visibility of the creative achievements of our Nation’s Veterans. The competition is an annual event that provides Veterans receiving treatment at VA facilities the opportunity to participate in creative self-expression in art, creative writing, dance, drama and music as part of their therapy, and to gain recognition for these artistic accomplishments. 

All entries placing in the top three locally will advance to the national level where they will compete with entries submitted by Veterans from other VA facilities from across the country.  Selected first-place-winning Veterans are invited to attend the National Veterans Creative Arts Festival (hyperlink) https://department.va.gov/veteran-sports/national-veterans-creative-art…

To enter the competition, contact Madge Scherer 320-252-1670 ext. 7336 or 320-469-6658

Print and share the 2025 Creative Arts Flyer

Competition Rules Overview

  • To participate, Veterans must be eligible for VA health care and enrolled in the VA health care system PRIOR to entering the competition. 
  • All work must have been created after October 1, 2024 (with the exception of Military Combat Experience entries)
  • St. Cloud VA Health Care System (VAHCS)reserves the right to withhold entries from public viewing if needed.
  • All VISUAL ART entries must be framed and ready to hang – no glass
  • Veterans can enter up to 3 categories in EACH DIVISION, but only 1 entry per category
  • Must complete registration and consent forms
  • All possible care will be taken in handling items submitted for judging; however, St. Cloud VAHCS cannot be responsible for any loss or damage.

  

2025 Submission Deadline 

Friday, September 5th, 2025 

 

2025 Visual Art Entries

All entries must be brought to the Auditorium, Building 8

Please note: NO ACCESS AT BUILDING 8

Wed August 27, 10 a.m. - noon 

Thurs August 28, 2 - 4 p.m. 

Wed Sept 3, 10 a.m. - noon

Thurs Sept 4, 1- 3 p.m. 

Fri Sept 5, noon - 4 p.m. 

 

Art Entry Pick Up Times

Appointments are required

 

2025 Entries in All Other Divisions

Appointment required 

 

2025 Art Show Hours Auditorium, Building 8

Wednesday, Sept 10, 2025 12 - 6 p.m. 

Thursday, Sept 11, 2025 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. 

**New this year** 

Show and Tell Artistic Showcase

The Show and Tell Artistic Showcase IS NOT a juried category in the competition. 

2025 Artistic Showcase Word:  JOY

SHOW US and TELL US how engaging in the creative arts brings you JOY.  Sharing what brings you joy may inspire others to experience joy as well.

This intent of the showcase is to show the therapeutic value of the creative arts and how engaging in the arts is therapeutic to Veteran health and wellbeing.

Veterans participating in the Show and Tell Artistic Showcase will not receive an invitation to attend the Festival.  Submissions will not be shipped/sent to the Festival. 

Submissions that meet the requirements may be selected for inclusion in an electronic booklet to be posted on the www.creativeartsfestival.va.gov website by April, 2026.  (For copyright reasons, it should be expected that only excerpts of creative writing pieces and still images of performance entries will be shown in the booklet.  Not all write-ups will be included.)

SHOW US what JOY means to you AND TELL US how your artistic piece brings you joy.

VISUAL ART CATEGORIES

  1. Acrylic Painting
  2. Oil Painting
  3. Watercolor
  4. Pastels
  5. Monochromatic Drawing
  6. Colored Drawing
  7. Craft Coloring Kit
  8. Color by Number Kit
  9. Suncatcher or Sand Art Kit
  10. Black and White Photography
  11. Color Photography
  12. Digital Art
  13. Pyrography
  14. Transfer/Engraving Art Kit
  15. Printmaking
  16. Collage
  17. Assemblage
  18. Diorama
  19. Combined Kit
  20. Mixed Media
  21. Sculpture
  22. Pottery
  23. Slip-Cast Ceramics
  24. Stained or Painted Figurines
  25. Figurine Painting Kit
  26. Scroll Saw/Fretwork
  27. Carving
  28. Woodworking/Lathe Work
  29. Wood Building Kit
  30. Model Building Kit
  31. Metalwork
  32. Jewelry (not beads)
  33. Beadwork
  34. Glasswork
  35. Mosaic
  36. Mosaic Kit
  37. Crocheting/Knitting/Knotting
  38. Fiber Arts Original Design
  39. Fiber Arts Pattern
  40. Fiber Arts Kit
  41. Needlework Original Design
  42. Needlework Pattern
  43. Needlework Kit
  44. Leather Kit
  45. Leather Carving/Tooling/Stamping
  46. Physical Health Recovery
  47. Mental Health Recovery
  48. Combat Experience
  49. Group Art

 

CREATIVE WRITING CATEGORIES

  1. Rhyming Poetry-Military Experience - no longer than 48 text lines  
  2. Rhyming Poetry-Inspirational - no longer than 48 text lines 
  3. Rhyming Poetry-General Topic - no longer than 48 text lines   
  4. Non-Rhyming Poetry-Military Experience - no longer than 48 text lines    
  5. Non-Rhyming Poetry-Inspirational - no longer than 48 text lines 
  6. Non-Rhyming Poetry-General Topic - no longer than 48 text lines  
  7. Short, Short Story-Military Experience - no longer than 1,000 words
  8. Short, Short Story-Inspirational - no longer than 1,000 words
  9. Short, Short Story-General Topic - no longer than 1,000 words
  10. Personal Essay – An essay, no longer than 850 words
  11. Short Script –Entries in this category must not exceed 850 words
  12. Humor –Poetry entries should be no longer than 48 lines and prose entries must not exceed 850 words
  13. Special Recognition - Poetry entries should be no longer than 48 lines and prose entries must not exceed 1,000 words

 

DANCE CATEGORIES

  1. Ballroom
  2. Latin Ballroom
  3. Country/Western/Folk/Ethnic/Cultural 
  4. Modern/Contemporary
  5. Tap, Jazz or Ballet
  6. Line Dance
  7. Interpretive Movement
  8. Freestyle/Hip-Hop
  9. Novelty 
  10. Dance Challenge 

  11. Special Recognition 

     

DRAMA CATEGORIES

  1. Dramatic Prose 
  2. Patriotic Prose 
  3. Inspirational Prose 
  4. Comedy Prose 
  5. Dramatic Poetry 
  6. Patriotic Poetry 
  7. Inspirational Poetry 
  8. Comedy Poetry 
  9. Interpretive Performance-Dramatic 
  10. Interpretive Performance-Novelty 
  11. Short Video-Military Theme 
  12. Short Video-General Theme 
  13. Special Recognition

 

MUSIC CATEGORIES

  1. Vocal Solo Country/Folk/Bluegrass
  2. Vocal Solo Pop
  3. Vocal Solo Rock/Blues 
  4. Vocal Group Country/Folk/Bluegrass
  5. Vocal Group Pop
  6. Vocal Group Rock/Blues
  7. Vocal Rap/Hip Hop - Solo or group
  8. Vocal Classical/World/Ethnic- Solo or group
  9. Vocal Jazz - Solo or group 
  10. Vocal R&B/Soul/Funk - Solo or group 
  11. Vocal Broadway - Solo or group
  12. Vocal Patriotic - Solo or group
  13. Vocal Spiritual - Solo or group
  14. Original Vocal - General Topic - Solo or group
  15. Original Vocal - Military Experience - Solo or group
  16. Instrumental Solo Pop
  17. Instrumental Solo Jazz/R&B/Soul
  18. Instrumental Solo Spiritual
  19. Instrumental Solo World/Ethnic
  20. Instrumental Solo Drums/Percussion
  21. Instrumental Group Pop/Jazz/R&B/Soul
  22. Instrumental Group Spiritual/World/Ethnic/Drums/Percussion
  23. Instrumental Country/Folk/Bluegrass – Solo or group
  24. Instrumental Rock/Blues – Solo or group
  25. Instrumental Broadway - Solo or group
  26. Instrumental Patriotic - Solo or group
  27. Instrumental Classical - Solo or group
  28. Original Instrumental - Solo or group
  29. Band/Ensemble – Country/Folk/Bluegrass/Pop
  30. Band/Ensemble – Jazz/R&B/Soul/Rock/Blues
  31. Special Recognition – Solo or group