The doodle
The drawing is an aerial view of a crowded table: plates, dishes and flowers, with the objects along the centre forming the letters of the word Google. Derlega spent roughly 35 hours on it. The subject was her family's Sunday dinners, which she has every week.
Her statement explained the twist in the brief. Asked for a wish about the next quarter of a century, she wished for continuity rather than change. "In the next 25 years, there are many things I wish for," she said, "but one of the things I wish for is for some things to stay the same, including these family dinners I have every Sunday."
The contest she won
Doodle for Google is open to students from kindergarten through twelfth grade across the United States, and draws tens of thousands of entries in a normal year. The 2024 theme asked entrants to picture their hopes for the next 25 years. A single national winner's artwork is published on the Google homepage, which is among the most-viewed pages in the world.
Derlega's doodle appeared there on 26 June 2024. The prizes attached to the win were a $55,000 college scholarship for the artist and a $50,000 technology package for her school.
The student behind it
Derlega was a student at Jackson-Reed High School in Washington, D.C., and had just graduated when the doodle ran. NBC Washington reported that she planned to study art and design at the University of Michigan, with a career in illustration and graphic design in view.
That trajectory, a national art prize immediately before an art degree, is the usual path for Doodle for Google winners, whose work is judged on drawing and on the statement behind it rather than on any technical portfolio.
Why the prize carries weight
A homepage doodle is an unusual kind of exposure for a teenager's drawing. For one day, a single student's artwork replaces the logo of the most-visited search page in the United States, which is a scale of audience that no gallery, competition or scholarship can otherwise offer someone still in high school.
The money is not trivial either. A $55,000 scholarship covers a serious portion of an American art degree, and the $50,000 technology grant goes to the school rather than to the winner, which is how the contest justifies itself as an education programme rather than a marketing exercise.
What is documented, and what is not
Documented: the doodle and its subject, the roughly 35 hours she spent on it, the 2024 theme, the homepage date of 26 June 2024, the $55,000 scholarship and $50,000 school package, her school in Washington, D.C., her university plans and her quoted statement. The sources are Google's own doodle archive and NBC Washington's report, both published on the day the doodle ran.
Not documented in these sources: her age or date of birth, which is why this page gives no birth year; her family's names; the title Google assigned to the artwork; and anything about her since she began at Michigan. The record stops at the summer of 2024.
Watch: Maisie Derlega on camera
| Person | Country | Milestone | Age / Stat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elisabeth Anisimow | United States | Living paintings sold at 11 for $2,500-$5,000 each | Age 11 |
| Carmel Bechler | Israel | Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2023 | Age 16 |
| Andrea Dominizi | Italy | A beetle in the corner of the frame, logging machinery behind it, and a wo | Age 17 |
| Maisie Derlega | United States | Winning Doodle for Google 2024 | — |
| Alexis Tinker-Tsavalas | Germany | Winning Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024 | — |
What is documented — and what is not
✓ Documented
- Won the 2024 national Doodle for Google contest
- Doodle shown on Google's US homepage on 26 June 2024
- Prize of $55,000 scholarship plus $50,000 technology package for her school
- Student at Jackson-Reed High School, Washington, D.C.; planned to study art and design at the University of Michigan
? Unverified, disputed or wrong
- No age or date of birth in these sources
- The official title Google gave the artwork is not recorded here
- No information about her after the summer of 2024
Questions people ask about Maisie Derlega
What did Maisie Derlega draw?
An aerial view of her family's Sunday dinner table, with food, plates and flowers along the centre spelling out Google.
How old is Maisie Derlega?
No age or date of birth appears in the sources used here; she was a high school graduate in June 2024.
What did she win?
A $55,000 college scholarship and a $50,000 technology package for her school, plus a day on Google's US homepage.
When was her doodle on Google?
26 June 2024.
How long did the drawing take?
About 35 hours, according to NBC Washington.
Where did she go to school?
Jackson-Reed High School in Washington, D.C.
Where is Maisie Derlega now?
She planned to study art and design at the University of Michigan. Nothing later is documented in these sources.
What was the 2024 contest theme?
Students were asked to draw their wishes for the next 25 years.
Quick quiz: how well do you know Derlega’s story?
What did Maisie Derlega's winning doodle show?
How much was the scholarship?
What was the 2024 theme?
Sources
- Doodle for Google 2024 - US Winner — Google Doodles, 2024-06-26
- DC high school grad wins Doodle for Google contest with art inspired by her family's Sunday dinners — NBC Washington, 2024-06-26
Checked by the Geniuses.club editorial team. Ages are given as of September 2026.
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