Sept. 30, 2003

For more information contact:
Michele Rouse
515-239-1691
michele.rouse@dot.state.ia.us

Iowa DOT's Office of Aviation sponsors annual art contest

AMES, Iowa – The Iowa Department of Transportation's Office of Aviation is again sponsoring the International Aviation Art Contest for young people in Iowa.  This is a great opportunity for young people between the ages of six and 17 to showcase artistic talent and creativity by drawing an aviation picture that captures this year’s theme of “Flying Saves Lives.”  Winning artwork will be forwarded on to a national competition. 

Today, helicopters fly accident victims to distant hospitals; organs are packed in ice and flown, in the nick of time, to save dying patients; pilots use planes and helicopters to fight large fires; and relief agencies transport food and water to starving and thirsty people around the globe.  Flight allows us to see like birds and move faster than the wind, and it has given us the ability to help those who could never be helped before.  Can you think of other ways that “flying saves lives?”  Let us count or, perhaps more accurately, illustrate the ways.

Artwork will be judged, at least in part, for its creative use of this theme. The contest competition is judged in three age groups: 6-9, 10-13 and 14-17. The age categories are determined by the contestants’ ages on Dec. 31, 2003. The best three entries in each category will be selected as state winners. State winners will receive a certificate, and their artwork will be sent to the national competition. Each of the nine national winners will receive a certificate, ribbon and framed photos of their masterpiece. These winning works will be sent to the international level.  The international awards will be gold, silver and bronze medals.

Federal and international sponsors of the 2004 International Aviation Art Contest are the National Aeronautic Association, National Association of State Aviation Officials, Federal Aviation Administration, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, in cooperation with Federation Aeronautique Internationale.

Contest information and registration forms can be accessed at iawings.com by calling 515-239-1691 or e-mailing michele.rouse@dot.state.ia.us

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