THERE were two Cork winners of the 2022 This is Art! national competition which celebrates young artists of all abilities.

Caterina Chiu Paone from Mitchelstown won the age 7 and under category for her artistic piece ‘Sleeping on a Rainbow’, while Phoenix Boniwell from Ballinspittle, won the age 8-11 category for her art ‘The Ghost of Garretstown’.

Working to the theme, ‘This Is Extraordinary’, almost 2,000 entries were received from young artists aged 18 and under, who created an original piece of art that will be showcased in an online art gallery for generations to come.

Caterina said: "I’ve been drawing cats since I was two and it makes me feel really happy that other people like my work.” Phoenix added: "It makes really happy that professional artists saw my work and they could understand the message and they thought it was cool. It means a lot to me."

The competition promotes artistic practice among young people and supports creativity, originality, and self-expression.

Selected works from this year's entries will feature on billboards nationwide and on social media as part of a campaign by The Creative Ireland Programme and RTÉ.