The piece won the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art 's `` Awards in the Visual Arts '' competition . This contest gets some of its money from the National Endowment from the Arts , a United States government group that gives money to art projects . The piece was a winner of the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art 's `` Awards in the Visual Arts '' competition , which is sponsored in part by the National Endowment for the Arts , a United States Government agency that offers support and funding for artistic projects .