The National Aeronautic Association (NAA) and the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) have announced the U.S. winners of their 2009 International Aviation Art Contest, held at the Smithsonian Institution National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.
The contest, sponsored by NAA and NASAO in cooperation with the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI), is intended to motivate and encourage young people in FAI member nations to become familiar with, and participate in, aeronautics, engineering and science.
To be eligible for the national judging, students participated in state-wide art contests and were first, second or third place winners in three age groupings. NASAO, which manages the national competition, received 198 drawing and painting entries from 22 states and more than 3,600 students.
The winners are:
Category I: 6 to 9 year olds
First Place: Chihye Kim, Tennessee
Second Place: Zeth Akins, Tennessee
Third Place: Jeremy Pan, California
Category II: 10 to 13 year olds
First Place: Sai Mandalapu, New Jersey
Second Place: Yoo Kyung Na, California
Third Place: Kristen Wagner, New Mexico
Category III: 14 to 17 year olds
First Place: Ismael Roman, Texas
Second Place: Janie Lee, California
Third Place: Devin Turner, Wisconsin
The artwork was judged for originality, creativity and use of the theme, “Create a Poster for the World Air Games.” The judges were Maj. Gen. Joseph T. Anderson (USMC, Retired), Dr. F. Robert van der Linden, and Dr. Dik Daso, all from the National Air and Space Museum; Deborah Gallaway formerly of NASA; and Margaret Finch, a well-known artist who specializes in aviation art.
Each national winner receives a certificate, a ribbon and a framed reproduction of the winning artwork. The original artwork then is sent to FAI headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, for the international judging in April.
The award-winning artwork can be seen on NASAO’s web site, www.nasao.org.
