Labette Community College Fall 2025 Latzer Art Award Winner Announced

Parsons, Kansas — Labette Community College (LCC) is proud to announce Ariel Adams as the Fall 2025 recipient of the prestigious Latzer Art Award, an honor recognizing outstanding artistic achievement within the LCC art program.

Adams’ award-winning photograph, “Reflection”, captures a delicate flower floating serenely on a still pond, its soft lavender petals mirrored beneath the surface. The image demonstrates not only her refined eye for natural beauty but also her growing mastery of photographic technique

“Ariel has a strong creative eye for composition and has developed a solid understanding of how to use both natural and artificial lighting to create mood in her photography,” said Melissa Kipp, LCC graphic design and photography professor. “The winning photograph showcases her advanced technical control of exposure, evident by the way she captured the flower’s delicate textures and subtle color gradients without overexposing the highlights, all while preserving rich detail in the shadows.”

The Latzer Art Award is presented each fall and spring semester to an LCC art student whose work shows exceptional skill, creativity, and dedication to the craft. The winning piece becomes part of LCC’s permanent art collection, honoring both the student artist and the legacy of Dr. John V. Latzer, whose generous endowment continues to support and encourage student creativity.

Created in partnership with the Parsons Area Community Foundation, the Latzer Art Award celebrates exceptional Fine Arts and Graphic Design students at LCC. Adams will be awarded a $500 scholarship to aid with future tuition and fees.

This piece was chosen from many talented student artists during the Labette Community College Hendershot Gallery Student Art Exhibit. Winners from each category in the exhibit were selected and are as follows.                  

• 2D Design: Savannah Beaty  - Cut Paper Illustration “Through the Glass”
• Art Appreciation: Ariel Adams – Watercolor “Messy Fruit”
• Ceramics: Bonnie Merritt – “Slab Crock with Nesting Bowls”
• Drawing: Derrick Keeton - Pastel “Men with the Giant Boot”
• Commercial Graphics: Carter Swanson - Billboard Design “Billboard Design”
• Digital Photography: Lauren Harrison - Nature Photograph “Come In”
• Packaging Design: Abby Upton - Playing Card Box Design “Glass Deck”

For more information about LCC’s art programs or the Latzer Art Award, please contact the LCC Public Relations Office at 620-820-1280 or visit labette.edu.