Matilda Myers, ‘Rest,’ 2024. Winner, age group 13-15.
Every three years, the National Portrait Gallery hosts a major photography competition, designed not for adults but for teenagers. Aptly named the Teen Portrait Competition, the initiative invites U.S.-based students between the ages of 13 and 17 to showcase their photographic portraits, celebrating young and emerging talent across the country and its territories. The 2025 edition of the contest was no exception, resulting in more than 1,100 entries from 48 states, Guam, Puerto Rico, and Washington, D.C. After rigorous jury deliberations, the National Portrait Gallery finally unveiled two winners last month.
In the 13–15 age group, Matilda Myers of Maryland triumphed with Rest, a moody, atmospheric work in which a ballerina drapes herself over a carpet. Below her white tutu is a pickaxe, a stark contrast to the ethereality often associated with ballet. These visual cues seem to parallel a similar juxtaposition between masculinity and femininity, offering a commentary upon gendered expectations and associations.
Kate Stermer of California received the top prize from the 16–17 age group for The Cost of Conformity, depicting a teenage girl looming over a set of houses. Dangling from the girl’s hands are two cars, each of which is manipulated by marionette strings. In this scene, the subject is a puppeteer, the force that ultimately determines what defines success, conformity, and the costs that accompany both. The black-and-white color palette adds to the drama while seamlessly disguising collaged and overlapping layers.
Myers and Stermer were selected as winners through several rounds of judging. Photographs were first reviewed by the Teen Museum Council, a group of high school students from Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia, who aim to learn about museum careers while building a teenage community through interactive programs and events. The council narrowed the submissions to 40 semi-finalists. Three members of the council and artist Caitlin Teal Price juried the competition’s final round, determining 19 finalists and two winners.
Ten finalists were ultimately selected from the 13–15 age group, including a playful reinterpretation of lacrosse and royalty; a technicolored portrait inspired by sound waves; and a haunting close-up of a girl whose face is splattered with blood. In the 16–17 age group, nine finalists were announced, encompassing a photograph shot through a massive clock; an endearing portrait of two children sitting in a restaurant; and a contemplative scene framed by orange leaves and a cloudy sky.
“The Teen Portrait Competition is more than a celebration of talent. It’s a testament to the power of youth to reflect, challenge, and reimagine the world through art,” Sahtiya Hammell, education specialist and head of teen programs at the National Portrait Gallery, says. “Bringing the bold creativity and thoughtful perspectives of young artists from across the nation together highlights the universality of questions about identity, visibility, and community in our contemporary discourse.”
All 19 finalists will be on view alongside the National Portrait Gallery’s triennial The Outwin 2025: American Portraiture Today exhibition. To learn more about the Teen Portrait Competition and the upcoming exhibition, visit the National Portrait Gallery website.
In addition to Matilda Myers’s Rest, Kate Stermer’s The Cost of Conformity was also named the winner of the 2025 Teen Portrait Competition, presented by the National Portrait Gallery.
Kate Stermer, ‘The Cost of Conformity,’ 2024. Winner, age group 16-17.
Before announcing the competition’s two winners, the National Portrait Gallery unveiled ten finalists in the 13–15 age group.
Celine Ding, ‘The Daily Cut.’ Age group 13-15.
Serra Zeynab Sablak, ‘My Star.’ Age group 13-15.
Ashley Slingluff, ‘Lacrosse Royalty.’ Age group 13-15.
Caydence Silva, ‘Sound Waves.’ Age group 13-15.
Leah Beaudet, ‘His Favorite Role Model.’ Age group 13-15.
Stellar Slentz-Baeb, ‘Reflection.’ Age group 13-15.
The museum also selected nine finalists in the 16–17 age group.
Ethan Fabrizio Hoyos Hernandez, ‘Untitled.’ Age group 16-17.
Sarah Fernandez, ‘Come on, Smile!’ Age group 16-17.
Aissatou Toure, ‘The Beauty of Seasons.’ Age group 16-17.
Sophia Eren Laming, ‘A Surface of Reflection.’ Age 16-17.
Rylie Chanthavong, ‘Untitled.’ Age group 16-17.
