IRHS student’s flag design chosen to represent Delaware

Next month, Indian River High School junior Lucas Truitt will be traveling to see a flag he designed as it joins 49 other flags from across the nation to fly in the nation’s capital, at the Rayburn House Office Building.

Coastal Point • R. Chris Clark
Indian River High School’s Lucas Truitt proudly displays the flag he designed to represent Delaware.

“Throughout the nation, we celebrate students doing artwork in grades K-12. One of the big national competitions is the designing of a flag,” explained Jennifer Boland, president of Youth Art Month. “His flag is going to be flown at the National Art Teachers Convention in New York City this year, and it will also be flown in Washington, D.C.”

This was the first year that IR art teacher Mark Mott-Lynn’s classes had participated in the statewide competition, which he used as a school assignment.

“It was just another project, and it was fun. It gave me creative liberty. There weren’t many guidelines,” said Truitt. “I didn’t expect to win. I expected it to get sent from the school – just kind of my competitive side – but I really didn’t expect to win.”

“We had other designs that ranged from fine-arts kind of design to a more graphic-arts sort of design,” added Mott-Lynn. “And that was Lucas’. His was very bold, very easy to understand.”

In the end, it was Truitt’s design, with its simple design and bold colors, that was chosen to represent the state of Delaware, out of all of the contest entries.

“I took a more cartoonish blue hen,” said Truitt, “just the head, and then coming from that was a colored pencil line that in cursive wrote out ‘Delaware,’ leading up to a colored pencil. It was done in the state colors — blue and gold. And it had the art month logo on it.”

Boland said the artwork submitted from across the state was judged by an impartial panel of community members who are also artists.

“I set up three judges, and they look through all of the pieces and they judge them on a rubric scale. Basically: Does it show Delaware? Does it show the art? And does it have the graphic design?”

Boland, who is also the vice president of the National Art Educators Association, said that it is crucial to keep kids interested and active in the arts.

“I think – especially in our global economy today – creative thinking is the way to go, and art is the best way to hone in on the creative skill,” she said. “Even if you decide not to go into the creative arts, or become a musician, those things will definitely help you in your future to be a well-rounded and creative thinker.”

Truitt said he first became interested in art at a young age, and it made such an impression on him that he kept with it.

“I always drew a lot growing up… It’s one of those things – I would sit down at the kitchen table and have my colored pencils and everything. It was one of those things – I just practiced, and it developed and just became something I really enjoy.”
Coastal Point • R. Chris Clark

A member of IR’s Leo Club, the football team and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Truitt said he hopes to eventually take his artistic talent and study graphic design in college.

“I’m really interested in both art and technology,” he said. “It’s a nice way to mix it together and work in the advertising field, as well. It’s just a way for, of course, expression and to put what’s in your mind on paper. Kind of give it its own feeling – everyone’s artwork is different and it shows you a little bit about the person.”

“He’s a really good artist – very meticulous. He’s a good student, works hard, and really thinks about his artwork. He just doesn’t do something, he definitely thinks about it,” said Mott-Lynn of Truitt.

Truitt said he was surprised to be chosen but that he is proud of his accolade.

“It’s really nice. It feels accomplishing in a way, to know that it’s a hobby but it’s something that other people enjoy.”