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Mark Kness always wanted to enter the Federal Duck Stamp contest, but thought if he couldn't win the state contest, what was the point?
But since winning the state contest last year, Kness, of Albert Lea, decided to try his hand and enter. His first-time efforts paid off in the form of a fourth-place finish among over 200 entries.
"I'm very happy with how I finished," Kness said. "To me, this is as big if not bigger than winning in Minnesota."
The top five pieces were featured on ESPN last Saturday, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will keep those top finishers for a whole year, during which time they'll travel to various museums.
"I'll get a lot of exposure," the artist said.
The sale of Federal Duck Stamps raises approximately $25 million each year to fund waterfowl habitat acquisition for the National Wildlife Refuge System. The Federal Duck Stamp Contest is sponsored each year by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
"Generations of waterfowl hunters, stamp collectors, art lovers and conservationists have bought these beautiful stamps for more than seven decades," Interior Secretary Gale Norton said in a news release. "Their purchases directly contribute thousands of acres of irreplaceable waterfowl habitat to the National Wildlife Refuge System."
All waterfowl hunters age 16 and older are required to purchase and carry Duck Stamps. Ninety-eight percent of the proceeds from the $15 Duck Stamp goes into the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund, which purchases wetlands for the National Wildlife Refuge System.
The Federal Duck Stamp Contest is the nation's longest running federally sponsored art competition. No cash prize is awarded, but winning can boost the professional reputation of even a previously unknown wildlife artist. Winning artists stand to make hundreds of thousands of dollars from the sale of limited editions of prints of their Duck Stamp designs.
There are more than 540 National Wildlife Refuges spread across all 50 states and U.S. territories, and a valid Duck Stamp can be used for free admission to any refuge open to the public. Refuges offer unparalleled recreation opportunities, including hunting, fishing, birdwatching and photography. Duck Stamp dollars have been used to acquire land at hundreds of refuges in nearly every state in the nation.
Duck Stamps bearing this year's winning design, created by Mark Anderson of Sioux Falls, S.D., will go on sale at post offices, national wildlife refuges, some national retail chain stores, and various sporting-goods stores nationwide July 1, 2005.
Kness said Minnesota artists have dominated the national contests, with 23 winners. "It speaks highly of the caliber of artists we have in Minnesota," he added.
But since winning the state contest last year, Kness, of Albert Lea, decided to try his hand and enter. His first-time efforts paid off in the form of a fourth-place finish among over 200 entries.
"I'm very happy with how I finished," Kness said. "To me, this is as big if not bigger than winning in Minnesota."
The top five pieces were featured on ESPN last Saturday, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will keep those top finishers for a whole year, during which time they'll travel to various museums.
"I'll get a lot of exposure," the artist said.
The sale of Federal Duck Stamps raises approximately $25 million each year to fund waterfowl habitat acquisition for the National Wildlife Refuge System. The Federal Duck Stamp Contest is sponsored each year by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
"Generations of waterfowl hunters, stamp collectors, art lovers and conservationists have bought these beautiful stamps for more than seven decades," Interior Secretary Gale Norton said in a news release. "Their purchases directly contribute thousands of acres of irreplaceable waterfowl habitat to the National Wildlife Refuge System."
All waterfowl hunters age 16 and older are required to purchase and carry Duck Stamps. Ninety-eight percent of the proceeds from the $15 Duck Stamp goes into the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund, which purchases wetlands for the National Wildlife Refuge System.
The Federal Duck Stamp Contest is the nation's longest running federally sponsored art competition. No cash prize is awarded, but winning can boost the professional reputation of even a previously unknown wildlife artist. Winning artists stand to make hundreds of thousands of dollars from the sale of limited editions of prints of their Duck Stamp designs.
There are more than 540 National Wildlife Refuges spread across all 50 states and U.S. territories, and a valid Duck Stamp can be used for free admission to any refuge open to the public. Refuges offer unparalleled recreation opportunities, including hunting, fishing, birdwatching and photography. Duck Stamp dollars have been used to acquire land at hundreds of refuges in nearly every state in the nation.
Duck Stamps bearing this year's winning design, created by Mark Anderson of Sioux Falls, S.D., will go on sale at post offices, national wildlife refuges, some national retail chain stores, and various sporting-goods stores nationwide July 1, 2005.
Kness said Minnesota artists have dominated the national contests, with 23 winners. "It speaks highly of the caliber of artists we have in Minnesota," he added.