The Fifth Fantasies to Faith Christmas Art Contest was dedicated to a special anniversary: seventy years since the signing of the first diplomatic agreement between Russia and America.

The art contest was organized and sponsored by the Russian Ministry of Education and The Evangelistic Association of Russia (TEAR).

The five main goals of the art contest are:

1. To get the orphanages to play a more active role in the children’s spiritual development;
2. To form the spiritual values of a child in his/her early stages;
3. To develop children’s potential skills and talents in an area of visual arts;
4. To practically teach children to understand the meaning of good deeds, love and justice;
5. To learn the history of the United States and our own.

The number of artworks submitted for the final judging in Moscow:

One hundred and forty nine paintings were chosen to be displayed at the art museum in Moscow. I. Zikov, one of the top nationally recognized artists of Russia, was the chairman of the judging panel that selected the winners. Along with a Certificate of Excellence presented by TEAR and The Ministry of Education, four hundred children were awarded special diplomas by the Moscow art museum.

The Christmas art contest was also recognized by the National Children’s Magazine as one of the most distinctive, prestigious, and life changing events in the lives of the orphan children. The twenty children who won the art contest, out of tens of thousands of children, will be traveling to the US to celebrate their victory.

In commemoration of five years of organizing the art contest, TEAR is publishing a special memory book, where finalists of the contest and selected paintings from all five years will be featured.

The Russian Ministry of Education is very pleased with the results of the art contest and is ready to start working on the Sixth Christmas art contest in the coming year.