News: United to offer 757s as artist's canvas

United Airlines is launching a contest to find and uplift underrepresented women artists, providing an opportunity for the prizewinners to paint one of the airline's Boeing 757 aircraft. Entrants will be required to visually represent either New York / New Jersey or California, two of the airline's key markets, in their own style. The designs must also convey what the company's mission and the communities in each region mean to the artist.

Deadline for submissions, which need to include a design idea, examples from the artist's portfolio and a short video, is March 24, 2019.

United is running a contents that will enable two female artists the chance to decorate a 757 airliner. (BriYYZ)

Entries will be narrowed down to three finalists by a panel of judges from each region between March 25 and April 9, followed by a public vote from April 10 to April 19, 2019. Two winners - one representing each region - will be chosen and given a chance to work alongside renowned artist Shantell Martin to finalize a design for their plane. The repainted aircraft take to the air during the autumn of 2019. Finalists and winners will also have their own open gallery show and their art work will on display inside United Airlines' terminals throughout the rest of the year.

In advance of Women’s History Month that begins on Friday, Jill Kaplan, United's president for New York and New Jersey, explained: "When we heard the statistics about how underrepresented women are when it comes to displaying their art, we thought what better way to contribute to changing this narrative than by offering the biggest canvas we have access to – an aircraft."

Text © The Aviation Oracle