2026 Bookmark Winners
Congratulations to all the 2026 Bookmark Contest Winners!
As always, the Library was overwhelmed by the number of submissions for our annual bookmark art contest. There are so many truly talented artists living in our community, and we sincerely wish we could print more than one selection per age group. It’s always hard to narrow the choices and select a winner.
- Our judges, all HCLS employees with backgrounds in art and design, narrowed the choices using a rubric that awards points for creativity, use of color, cohesiveness of composition, and overall appeal. Once the top three were ranked by score, a lively debate ensued to choose the final winners in each age group.
- Creativity looks at whether we’ve seen similar subjects and how submissions use the allotted space. Is it new? Is it exciting? Is it a little different?
- Color includes choice of hues and tones, shading and blending, as well as vibrancy and appeal.
- For cohesiveness, judges see if the entire bookmark makes sense as one design. Does it make sense visually?
- And, last but not least, overall appeal takes a look at how it all works together – because sometimes the whole is more than the sum of its parts. Is this the one you would want to pick up? Did it make you smile?
We hope you agree with our choices! Bookmarks will be available in all our branches by the end of August.
Kindergarten & Grade 1
Aziz F., grade 1, Bushy Park ES
All the judges were dazzled by the adorable penguin in oversized swim trunks. His design used the space to good effect, with cool blue water and a bright sunny beach.
Grades 2 & 3
Madeleine M., grade 2, Running Brook ES
Madeleine’s design scored high in creativity and use of color, but the dragon’s sly smile and side-eye made the judges smile. The way the dragon’s tail reached all the way to the top was a great use of the narrow format of the bookmark.
Grades 4 & 5
Leila Bella R., grade 4, Atholton Adventist Academy
Leila Bella achieved an impressionist feel with her creative bending of colors in the beautiful hummingbird. The bright colors and bold black lines proved to be a winning combination.
Middle School
Maddy C., grade 8, Ellicott Mills MS
Blue and yellow are natural color opposites, and Maddy used them to excellent effect with her six cute yellow duckies swimming along her bookmark. The use of color and the cohesiveness of the rhythmic design brought smiles to the judges’ faces.
High School
Vincent M., grade 10, Guilford Park HS
Vince’s wonderfully creative bookmark comes with a decided sense of movement. It scored high on creativity and use of color – as well as overall appeal. We think this guy has found some joy!
Adult
Annie K.
The deep, rich shading of these gorgeous green plants brought Annie high scores in the use of color and overall excellence. The bookmark seems lush and living with all the different shades of green, plus deep darks and bright highlights.
Beyond Words Adult
Rose D.
This was a surprise entry! The judges wanted to reward Rose for bright, joyous rainbow of colors in neat stripes. We thought it was a cohesive design that communicated a lot of joy!
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