Eugene A. Tighe Middle School seventh-grade pen and ink artist Daniel Dulin holds the drawing of cars and trucks he did for the annual Hanko Art Show when he was in fifth grade that Principal Michele Carney Ray purchased to hang in her office.

MARGATE – Daniel Dulin of Longport, a seventh-grader at the Eugene A. Tighe Middle School, enjoys drawing. His hobby garnered attention recently when five of his works won recognition in a competition.

“It is just fun to sit and draw different things I like,” Dulin said Monday.

The things he likes are cars, trucks, recreational vehicles and houses – all drawn in pen and ink.

Dulin was notified recently that five of his works are winners in the region at large 2012 Scholastic Art and Writing Contest. His mother, Debbie Dulin, had submitted five of his drawings to the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers for the Scholastic Contest, and all five were awarded.

Three were awarded the gold key, which means they will go on to be judged on the national level with others from across the country. Two received silver key awards.

Though he is a self-taught artist, according to his mother, while in sixth grade, Dulin had the opportunity to attend the Moore College of Art in Philadelphia on a partial scholarship with the help of Tighe art teacher Margo Juliano. Dulin said he now pays much more attention to details in his pen and ink drawings.

The Scholastic Art and Writing Contest and the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers identify teens with exceptional artistic and literacy talents and bring their work to a national audience. According to the contest website, each year more than 250,000 students from 90 regions across the country enter their work to the Scholastic Art and Writing Contest, and about 50,000 students are recognized.

After the regional and national judging, about 1,100 students are selected as national winners. Dulin was one of only three students from New Jersey who placed in the region at large, according to his mother, and the only one to receive a gold key.

The annual art show and auction at Steve and Cookie’s by the Bay has featured several of Dulin’s drawings, and Tighe School Principal Michele Carney Ray has one hanging in her office that she won in the 2010 auction.

“Daniel has an amazing gift, and I am so pleased that I am able to have a piece of his work in my office. We are all very proud of his success with the art contest and wish him good luck on the national level,” said Carney Ray.

Dating back to 1923, the roster of past winners includes Andy Warhol, Sylvia Plath, Truman Capote, Richard Avedon, Robert Redford, Joyce Oates and Zac Posen.

Daniel Dulin’s pen and ink artwork earned him awards in the 2012 Scholastic Art and Writing Contest.