The City of Ventura, in partnership with E.P. Foster Library, is pleased to announce the fourth annual “Art Tales,” a unique contest for creative writers that is open to all Ventura County residents.

To enter submit a short story or poem by March 1, 2012, inspired by one of the Municipal Art Collection works of art currently on loan to the E.P. Foster Library, 651 E Main St. The exhibit, located on the second floor near the rear (children's) entrance opens Oct. 17, 2011.

Each piece in this year's selection of artwork represents the artist's process of creating "Today's Symbolic Images":

1. Chairs Series IV, 1992, oil on paper by Carol Rosenak (1926-2002)
2. CR 8.01 & 9.00, 2000, tradigital etching by Joseph Piasentin (b. 1950)
3. Rara Avis Orchids, 2007, archival C-print by Cassandra C. Jones (b. 1975)
4. Approved, 2001, mixed media on paper by Lee Hodges (b. 1950)
5. Chaise Lounge, 1983, limited edition serigraph by Bruce Freeman (b. 1953)

The contest provides an excellent opportunity for local writers of all ages to exhibit their written skills while challenging them to view art in a new way. It also furthers the goals of the Municipal Art Collection, envisioned in 1999 to make the artwork accessible to the community by displaying the collection in the public areas of City Hall and other municipal buildings.

CONTEST RULES: QUALIFIED ENTRIES shall be (a) either a single short story or poem (no multiple entries per person allowed) (b) no longer than 600 words (c) written solely by the entrant (d) not previously published (e) nor in conflict with trademark, copyright, rights of privacy, rights of publicity or any other rights, of any kind or nature, of any other person or entity; (f) which does not include any language or other content that is indecent or inappropriate as determined by the CITY in its discretion. Entries not satisfying these criteria in any respect will be disqualified.

Entries will be accepted in either English or Spanish, in 12 point font, and must include at the top, the author’s name, address, phone mumber, email address, age, title of work and number of words. Entries must be submitted electronically by March 1, 2012 to rnewsham@cityofventura.net and please place "Art Tales" in the subject box of the email. Also attach a completed release form (pdf) (forma de acuerdo de prensa en espanol) with your entry. Parents must complete the form for children under 18. This pdf form is a fill-able and save-able document that you can save as a document on your desktop,  complete, save and then email along with your poem or short story.

Entries will be judged by a committee of professionals, educators, librarians, and City of Ventura staff for creativity, presentation and correspondence to a specific artwork.

In addition to seeing their stories published on the city’s website, winners will receive a bound edition of the winning entries and a cash prize of $30 for first place and $15 for second place in three age categories: Youth (grades 2-8), High School (grades 9-12), and Adult (ages 18 and up).

For more contest information contact: Richard Newsham at 805.658.4706 or Denise Sindelar at 805.658.4793.