MISSOULA - The Montana Meth Project recently announced the winners of the 2023 Paint the State art contest.
Paint the State is a program of the Montana Meth Project.
The statewide public art contest that launched in 2006 to encourage artists across the state to communicate the risks of methamphetamine use and inspire drug-free lives
Using exterior paint, Violet Ries, a senior at Loyola Sacred Heart High School, created a mural on the exterior walls of a hay barn located on her family's property south of Missoula.
Ries painted "Life Blooms Drug Free," on the north wall of the hay barn which won second place in the teen statewide division of the contest. Drawing on inspiration from the wildflowers that grow outside her house.
"I really wanted to work on something more colorful, I know a lot of their past work has been pretty...dark and I wanted to bring a new spin to things. And nature means a lot to people here in Montana, So, I wanted to incorporate that into my work. For me I think the Montana Meth Project represents hope for the future and um hopefully some sort of stop to drug abuse in Montana," Ries said.
More information on the winners of the 2023 Paint the State Contest can be found at https://paintthestate.org/winners/.
