DALLAS — Collin Chon just graduated from 5th grade, and his artwork is already being shown publicly.
The 11-year-old won DART’S annual student art contest this year. His artwork is on display at the Dallas Museum of Art, Love Field Airport, and on DART rail stations, buses, and inside trains.
His winning artwork was selected from 688 entries from students in kindergarten through 12th grade.
This year, the contest’s theme was “Everyday Heroes Ride DART.” Along with the Dallas skyline and DART light rail, Chon’s winning drawing features doctors, nurses, construction workers, and postal workers.
“They've done a lot for us,” Chon said. “They've helped us through the pandemic, and they made our lives easier.”
The Greenhill School student did admit creating the skyline was a little tricky.
“I had to actually make it look big," he explained. "I used acrylic paint, which isn't really my strength. I had to add details to the buildings. I had to make them different colors, finding other shades of blue and gray."
The DART bus that’s completely decorated in Chon’s art will be in service for the entire year, DART said.
Chon hopes his art will shine a brighter light on these everyday heroes.
“To show the gratitude and really respect these people because I think we take them for granted a lot,” Chon said.