NEW ORLEANS – The George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts (GRFA), in partnership with the Trombone Shorty Foundation, recently announced the winners of its annual visual art and songwriting contests. Thirteen high school juniors and seniors from across Louisiana were awarded $25,000 in college scholarships (finalists listed below). The 2026 contest theme was “Unveiling the Bayou: Light and Shadow” which encouraged students to explore and express themes of contrast, light and shadow, while channeling the early work of George Rodrigue, specifically The Bayou Collection, which is now on tour at venues throughout the country.
The 13 finalists and their families recently gathered at the Scholarship Art & Songwriting Contest Awards Luncheon on Saturday, March 28, at the Sheraton New Orleans Hotel. In addition to the scholarship awards, visual art winners’ pieces will tour on exhibition across Louisiana (Summer + Fall 2026), while the first-place songwriting winner will have the opportunity to perform at the Trombone Shorty Foundation’s annual fundraiser, Shorty Fest, in May.
GRFA has also partnered with the Loyola University’s College of Music and Media to provide additional opportunities for the Songwriting Contest winner. These benefits include: the opportunity to record their song in Loyola’s state-of-the-art Studio A, alongside in-house engineers and producers; the opportunity to be represented for Film and TV sync placements by Wolf Moon Entertainment’s Studio Music Library.
“We are so impressed with the quality of the work – both art and song – that the students have created for this year’s contests,” said Jacques Rodrigue, Executive Director of GRFA. “I know that dad would be proud to see that The Bayou Collection, created over 40 years ago, was inspiring students today to create their own works of art and song.”
Songwriting Contest Finalists:
A panel of celebrity judges, including: Ashley Shabankareh (Director of Operations & Programs, Trombone Shorty Foundation), Julian “Juice” Gosin (Artist, Educator, Producer/Music Instructor at Trombone Shorty Academy), Glenn Hall (Grammy Nominated Musician & Instructor at Trombone Shorty Academy), Jasmine Batiste (Musician, Educator & Instructor at Trombone Shorty Academy), and Douane Waples (Musician & Educator) selected three finalists to share $6,000 in college scholarships. Judging criteria was based on structure and composition, melody, and lyrics.
1st Place Songwriter – $3,000 Scholarship
John Zaffuto (Senior, New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, New Orleans)
“Shoehill (Love and Hate in Louisiana)”
2nd Place Songwriter – $2,000 Scholarship
Ash Nelson (Senior, Neville High School, Monroe)
“Across the Bayou There’s a Lighthouse”
3rd Place Songwriter – $1,000 Scholarship
Dajah Lomas (Senior, East Ascension High School, Gonzales)
“First Love”
“It’s incredibly inspiring to see how these young artists are interpreting the culture and stories of Louisiana through their own creative lens.” says Bill Taylor, Trombone Shorty Foundation Founding Executive Director. At the Trombone Shorty Foundation, we believe in giving the next generation real opportunities to find their voice and share it with the world—and this partnership with the George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts is a powerful example of that in action.”
Visual Art Contest Winners: Contest judges selected the below 10 finalists to share $19,000 in college scholarships. Individual visual artwork was judged on concept/design, technical skill and creativity.
Visual Art contest judges included: Jill Hackney (Artist), Emily Feazel (Designer, Exhibits & Special Events – R.W. Norton Art Gallery), Ashley Royer (Creative Director – Imperial Calcasieu Museum), Priscilla Simpson (Executive Director – Shaw Center for the Arts), Shemsi Frezel (Curator – Rodrigue Studios), Kathy Rodriguez (Assistant Professor, Department of Fine Arts, University of New Orleans) and Olivia Helmer (Curator – Alexandria Museum of Art).
1st Place Senior – $5,000
Mikayla Ringor – (Caddo Parish Magnet High School, Shreveport)
“The Sky Opened Up”
2nd Place Senior – $4,000
Luci Lavery – (West Monroe High School, West Monroe)
“The Mysteries of Life”
3rd Place Senior – $3,000
Claire Rimmer – (Caddo Parish Magnet High School, Shreveport)
“Among the Cypress Trees”
4th Place Senior – $2,000
Makalya Rhodes – (Homeschool, Dulac)
“Paw Paw T-Earl’s Boat, The Native Dancer at Rest”
5th Place Senior – $1,000
Sarah Gordon – (St. Joseph’s Academy, Baton Rouge)
“Hidden in Plain Sight”
1st Place Junior – $1,500
Dare Macchione – (New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, New Orleans)
“Life Through the Bayou”
2nd Place Junior – $1,000
Shiyin Wang – (Baton Rouge Magnet High School/ 533 Art Studio, Baton Rouge)
“Echo”
3rd Place Junior – $750
Sophia Elliott – (Caddo Magnet High School, Shreveport)
“Farewell, Mama”
4th Place Junior – $500
Bobby Chen – (Baton Rouge Magnet High School/533 Art Studio, Baton Rouge)
“Inherited Waters”
5th Place Junior – $250
Tiffany Foxworth – (Episcopal High School of Baton Rouge, Baton Rouge)
“Silent Witness”