The next George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest awakens with spring

Fairfax, Viginia - This past fall the George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest saw a lot of talented artists submit stunning works of art. With $7,000 in prizes on the line, you could see that a great amount of effort went into each entry.

Many students spent months working on their pieces, making sure they were just right. Artists like Jessica Cho from Cupertino, California.

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Honorable mentions from the NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest's oldest contestants: tenth through twelfth graders

Fairfax, Virginia - This is it, the last of the honorable mentions from this year's George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest. As with our winning entries, we saved the best for last and now present our Category IV entries.

Just like all of our other honorable mentions, these entries came oh so close to receiving winning marks by our judges but, despite falling short, they are still recognized by our judges as being exceptional.

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Moving up to the George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest's seventh through ninth grade honorable mentions

Fairfax, Virginia - Continuing onward with the 2012 George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest honorable mentions we move to our teenagers in middle school and even a little bit of high school. These seventh through ninth graders entered fantastic works of art that our judges wanted to recognize even though they did not place.

Above we have Kelly Wang's snarling wolf titled The Snowy Wolf. An eighth grader from Johns Creek, Georgia, Kelly also took home an honorable mention in Category III last year.

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More breathtaking art from some of the country's top first through twelfth grade artists

For 25 years the George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest has come around every fall, seeing entries by students who have spent months to get things just right. The panel of judges that preside over the contest have a tough job selecting each category's winners and are routinely impressed by the artwork they see.

More on the #8 Story of 2012 - The Youth Wildlife Art Contest ...

Recognizing talented artists from Category II of this year's George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest

Fairfax, Virginia - Revisiting the George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest's Category II, for our fourth through sixth grade students, here are the honorable mentions our judges awarded.

Above you can see Albert Pei's entry Red Fox Family. A sixth grader from Union City, California, Albert is a veteran of the contest. He has previously won first place in Category I in 2009 and second place in Category II in 2010. Albert did not enter the contest in 2011, but is back this year and continues to get recognition by our judges for his talent.

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What happens when you have too many great entries in the George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest? Honorable mentions.

Fairfax, Virginia - The George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest receives so many amazing entries each year. All four categories receive hundreds of works of art and, although only three from each can place, there are a lot that we would like to recognize. These entries that didn't quite win are given honorable mentions by our judges and we have Category I's for you today.

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First time George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest participant takes top honors

Fairfax, Virginia - The George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest's Best In Show winner was selected from among every entry received this year. Category does not matter when it comes to the grand prize. The artwork our judges are most impressed with, the artwork displaying the most effort, creativity, anatomical accuracy, and composition, receives a $1,000 prize.

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After two consecutive Honorable Mentions, a first place finish for Georgia's Marianne Lim

Fairfax, Virginia - This is it - the final group. The George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest's Category IV, for students in tenth, eleventh and twelfth grades is our toughest division.

The winning entries from this category are truly a sight to see. Months and months of effort are poured into each piece and our judges earn their keep selecting the final three.

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Winning entries from the seventh, eighth and ninth graders in the 2012 George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest

Fairfax, Virginia - And now the winners of Category III in this year's George Montgomery/NRA Youth Wildlife Art Contest. Reserved for seventh, eighth and ninth graders, Category III is our second oldest group and home to some fierce competition.

Our judges always have a tough time with Category III because there are not only so many entries, but so many good entries. It's at this age when so many students are taking art classes both in and outside of school. A lot of work goes into these entries and it shows. But there must be only three winners and our judges finally narrowed it down.

More on the Youth Wildlife Art Contest's Category III winners ...