Year of the Frog is a global public awareness campaign to focus attention on endangered amphibians and the critical work being done by zoos and aquariums to save them.  Student artists may express their interpretations of Michigan frogs, toads and salamanders, as well as images of amphibian residents at the Detroit Zoo’s National Amphibian Conservation Center.  Other themes may include the impact of habitat loss, climate change and pollution on amphibian populations, as well as efforts to propagate and conserve rare and endangered amphibian species from around the world.

To be eligible, visit www.detroitzoo.org and click on the rotating banner to access the guidelines and consent forms needed for submission.  Entries must be submitted on 8.5-by-11 inch paper, preferably made from recycled materials in a horizontal format.  All entries and required forms must be delivered to 2008 Year of the Frog Youth Art Competition and Mosaic Murals Exhibition, Administration Building Switchboard, Detroit Zoological Society, 8450 W. 10 Mile Road, Royal Oak, MI  48067. 

Award certificates will be presented at each grade level for best of class as well as first through fifth places and two honorable mentions.  Entries will be judged based on originality and artistic merit by a jury selected by the Detroit Zoological Society.  The 104 winning entries will be displayed in the Exhibit Gallery of the Zoo’s Ford Education Center May 24 through September 14, 2008.

In addition, all artwork submitted for the competition will be displayed throughout the Detroit Zoo and Belle Isle Nature Zoo as part of large-scale mosaic murals created by Project S.N.A.P., an organization designed to engage the personal and creative energies of students in a collaborative process and help them develop the skills necessary to become socially responsible leaders.  The murals will be designed by mosaic artist Roy Feinson, who also created mosaic murals for Disneyland’s 50th anniversary and the 2008 Grammy Awards.  The Year of the Frog murals will be unveiled on the Detroit Zoo’s 80th Anniversary, August 1, and will remain on display through December 31, 2008.

For more information on Project S.N.A.P., visit www.projectsnap.org.  For questions concerning the Youth Art Competition and Mosaic Murals Exhibition, call the Detroit Zoo at (248) 541-5717 ext. 3750, or email Mark Packer at mpacker@dzs.org or Liz Reckinger at lreckinger@dzs.org.
 
The Detroit Zoological Society is a non-profit organization that operates the Detroit Zoo and Belle Isle Nature Zoo.  Situated on 125 acres of naturalistic exhibits, the Detroit Zoo is located at the intersection of Ten Mile Road and Woodward Avenue, just off I-696, in Royal Oak.  The Detroit Zoo is open daily 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. November through March and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. April through October.  Admission is $11 for adults 13 to 61, $9 for senior citizens 62 and older, and $7 for children ages 2 to 12; children under 2 are free.  For more information, call (248) 541-5717 or visit www.detroitzoo.org.  The Belle Isle Nature Zoo is open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. year-round and provides educational programming with interpretive staff support from the Huron-Clinton Metroparks.  For more information, call (313) 852-4056. 
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