Student banner art is ready for take-off at Bob Hope Airport

The artistic talents of three high school students will gain plenty of exposure in the coming months as their winning banner designs will be enlarged and hung from the Bob Hope Airport terminal tower.

Senior Daniel Lee from Crescenta Valley High, freshman Angus Crosby from Burbank High School and sophomore Chance Woods from Pasadena High School each placed first in their school districts for the airport’s 2014 Tower Banner Student Art Contest, and will have 16-by-25-foot versions of their designs on display on a three-month rotation.

Now in its seventh year, a record 358 students submitted entries under the theme, “Skies of Freedom.” The entries were narrowed down by each city’s arts and cultural commission.

The first-, second- and third-place winners from each school district were recognized by the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority on Monday.

Crosby’s winning entry depicts a child holding a model toy airplane, a pilot and an astronaut.

“I wanted to represent the history of aviation and the roots of Bob Hope Airport,” he said.

Crosby’s art instructor, James Bentley, was also at the authority meeting and said he appreciated the commissioners annually giving students a chance to showcase their talents.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for these kids to benefit their art portfolios and their general life experience,” he said.

Lee’s winning entry depicts the back of the torch-bearing arm of the Statue of Liberty with a commercial plane flying across the sky in front of the statue and another aircraft in the background.

Burbank High juniors Naija Erby and Elias Shankaji earned second and third place, respectively, for Burbank Unified.

Juniors Varduhi Grigoryan from Anderson W. Clark Magnet High School and JJ Junha Yoon from Hoover High School won second and third place, respectively, for Glendale.

Grigoryan focused her banner’s design to pay tribute to the pioneers of aviation.

“I drew Bessie Coleman, Amelia Earhart and the Wright brothers … it took me a few days to do it,” she said, adding that a career in design or graphic arts would be a lifelong goal.

The works of the second- and third-place winners will be put on display inside the airport alongside the first-place finishers’ designs once their banners have completed their three months hanging from the terminal building.

Crosby’s banner will be the first to grace the terminal tower in June.

Each school district also received a $3,000 grant from the airport authority to help enhance their art programs.

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Follow Arin Mikailian on Twitter: @ArinMikailian.