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Sorensen Center Art Showcase: Honor Agency

Sorensen Center Art Showcase

Monday, January 04 - Monday, January 11
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The Sorensen Center is proud to present its second annual Sorensen Center Art Showcase. We invite artists from the BYU community to share their creative energy through a variety of mediums—including visual arts like sculpture, mixed media, and digital art, as well as performative arts such as instrumental performances (solo or small ensembles up to 4 people), and vocal performances (original or cover pieces with up to 4 performers). All physical artwork will be displayed in a campus-wide showcase on January 22, 2027, and selected art pieces will be displayed in the Sorensen Center Awards Gala on March 26, 2027. Selected performative arts will be invited to perform at the Sorensen Center Awards Gala.

This year’s theme, “Honor Agency,” encourages you to reflect on what it means to honor the agency of others through Christ-centered leadership. Join us for a brief informational session about this year’s theme and learn about the competition on September 24 or October 29, 2026 at 6 pm in the McDonald Building.
When creating your piece, consider these guiding questions:

  • To Our Personal Agency (Self): How do we step away from passive people-pleasing or blame, and instead take courageous, accountable ownership of our own growth, boundaries, and choices?
  • To Others as Children of God: How can we use inspired questions and open invitations to encourage their growth, while completely resisting the urge to control, manipulate, or shame them? How do we lead, love, and lift those around us by truly listening and seeking to understand their hearts?
  • To Our Various Stewardships: How do we handle our responsibilities—whether managing a project, a calling, or a team—by empowering others and letting go of micro-management so they have room to create and grow?
  • To Heavenly Father: How do we move away from treating righteousness like a transaction, and instead freely offer our will, trust His timing, and surrender our need for control to His greater wisdom?

All submissions will have the opportunity to win scholarships—including a $1,000 grand prize—and be featured in the Sorensen Center Awards Gala. Prizes will be awarded in each category, with first-place winners receiving $500 per participant and second-place winners receiving $250 per participant, plus a $1,000 Best Overall Award granted to one exceptional submission. Notified winners will be invited to attend this black-tie event, enjoy dinner, and receive special recognition for their work.

An RSVP link for the September 24 and October 29 info sessions will be posted shortly.

Judging Criteria

Entries will be evaluated by a panel composed of Sorensen Center Affiliates, Fellows, and Staff based on:

  • Relevance to the ‘Honor Agency’ principle, a component of the Christ Centered Leader Model
  • Artistic merit and performance quality
  • Emotional impact
  • Message clarity
  • Presentation and delivery
  • Written description of the work

Guidelines for Art Pieces

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Visual Art Pieces
Categories include sculpture, mixed media, and digital art.
  • Eligibility: Open to currently enrolled BYU students.
  • Originality: Artwork must be original and signed by the submitter.
  • Format: Art must be display-ready (e.g., framed or mounted) and no larger than 2’ x 3’ and under 30 lbs.
  • Online Submission: Complete and submit the online form between January 4 and January 11, 2027 by midnight.
  • Physical Submission: Deliver display-ready artwork to the BYU Wilkinson Center Garden Court between 8 –9:45 am on January 22 for a campus-wide display and judging. The artwork then needs to be picked up between 5:30-6:30 PM. Contact SorensenExperiences@byu.edu if you have issues with delivering or picking up artwork in these time frames.
  • Review Process: Submissions will be reviewed January 22, 2027, and artists will be notified by January 25, 2027.
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Performative Art Pieces Categories include instrumental performances (solo or small ensembles of up to 4 performers), and vocal performances (original or cover pieces, with up to 4 performers). Vocal performances will include any musical piece with a vocal part (even if other performers are playing instruments).
  • Eligibility: Open to currently enrolled BYU students.
  • Format: Submit a 3–5 minute video recording of your performance.
  • Submission: Complete the online submission form and send your performance video to SorensenExperiences@byu.edu between January 4 and January 11, 2027.
  • Review Process: Submissions will be reviewed from January 12-22, 2027, and artists will be notified by January 25, 2027.
  • Gala Performance: Selected performers must be available to perform live at the Sorensen Center Awards Gala on March 26, 2027, at 7:00 PM.
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We look forward to seeing how the BYU community creatively honors agency in a Christ-centered way through leadership and art. For questions, please contact SorensenExperiences@byu.edu.