CYPRESS, Calif., June 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Vans, the
original action sports and youth culture brand, is proud to welcome
John P. Stevens High School
from Edison, N.J. to the ranks of winners of the
Vans Custom Culture design competition. As the grand-prize
winner, John P. Stevens High School
has been awarded a donation of $50,000 for the school's arts education programs
to help foster the students' #RightToArt and support the next
generation of creative individuals.
![Vans crowns John P. Stevens High School winner of the 2016 Vans Custom Culture design competition. The New Jersey diner inspired design was chosen by judges Echosmith, YouTube star Maddi Bragg, professional surfer Dylan Graves and top LA chefs, Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo. School receives a $50,000 grant to help foster their #RightToArt. Vans crowns John P. Stevens High School winner of the 2016 Vans Custom Culture design competition. The New Jersey diner inspired design was chosen by judges Echosmith, YouTube star Maddi Bragg, professional surfer Dylan Graves and top LA chefs, Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo. School receives a $50,000 grant to help foster their #RightToArt.](https://photos.prnewswire.com/prnvar/20160609/377426)
In partnership with Americans for the Arts, Journeys, truth®,
Laguna College of Art and Design and
Blick Art Materials, Vans hosted the top five high school finalists
at a final event held on June 8 at
MAMA Gallery in downtown Los
Angeles. Vans reached out to creative minds across action
sports, art, music and street culture to form a panel of judges
that exemplify what it means to invest in the creativity of their
respective talents. This year, YouTube personality Maddi Bragg,
Vans professional surfer Dylan Graves and top chefs Jon Shook and Vinny
Dotolo behind Los Angeles
restaurants Animal, Jon & Vinny's and Son of a Gun, as well as
special musical guest Echosmith, selected the winning custom Vans
shoe designs among a talented group of young artists representing
the top five high schools. The remaining finalists – Eastern High
School (Louisville, Ky.), Moanalua
High School (Honolulu, Hawaii),
Orange High School (Orange,
Calif.) and Sandy High School
(Sandy, Ore.) were each awarded
$4,000 on behalf of Vans toward
their arts programs.
"Art has always been an essential ingredient of the Vans DNA.
Whether it was through creating custom footwear for the
skateboarders of the Dogtown era or young kids doodling
checkerboard across their sneakers, Vans have been a canvas of
expression for 50 years," said Kevin Bailey, VF and Vans
Global Action Sports and Outdoor Brand President. "We created Vans
Custom Culture to not only raise awareness of declining arts
education budgets across the country, but because we also
inherently believe that today's youth deserve the Right to Art. As
such, it is our duty to provide a platform that enables creative
expression for generations to come."
Now in its seventh year, the Vans Custom Culture competition
continues to inspire and empower creativity among high school
students across the country. Since the inaugural competition, more
than 10 percent of high schools nationally have participated in
Vans Custom Culture and more than $600,000 has been contributed to support arts
programs. Nearly 3,000 high schools registered for this year's
competition, designing four pairs of blank Vans based on four
themes: Action Sports, Art, Music and Local Flavor.
One of the designs from the grand-prize winners, John P. Stevens High School, has the opportunity
to be produced and sold in select Vans retail stores, as well as
online at Vans.com.
In addition to the grand prize, Vans donated an
additional $50,000 to non-profit partner, Americans for
the Arts, the nation's leading organization for advancing the arts
and art education. This year, Vans Custom Culture was recognized
for its innovative charitable approach, taking home top honors in
the education category for the 2016 Cause Marketing Halo
Awards.
Vans Custom Culture partners Journeys, truth® and
Laguna College of Art and Design also
provided participating schools the opportunity to raise additional
funds for their art education programs. As a long time Vans
partner, Journeys awarded a $15,000 'Local Attitude' award to Moanalua High
School for creating the most compelling 'local flavor' design.
truth®, one of the nation's most successful and longest
running youth smoking prevention campaign, challenged the students
to customize a skate deck inspired by their reaction to a raw fact
about tobacco. Station Camp High School in Gallatin, Tenn., took home the $10,000 truth® donation, for its winning
design that shows what it looks like when smoking is finished for
good.
Finally, Laguna College of Art and
Design, a premier national art and design college and
the first to offer a BFA degree in Action Sports design, partnered
with Vans to provide the opportunity for every single student that
participated in the 2016 competition the chance to apply for a
$25,000 scholarship to be received
upon admission. Almost 80 students will be eligible for the
scholarship, which will enable them to continue their creative path
and earn their BFA in Design + Digital Media.
To view pictures from the final event please click here and for
more information on Vans Custom Culture visit
Vans.com/CustomCulture. Follow the movement on Instagram
@vans.custom.culture and by using the hashtags #RightToArt
and #VansCustomCulture.
About Vans
Vans®, a VF
Corporation (NYSE: VFC) brand, is the original action sports
footwear, apparel and accessories brand. Vans authentic
collections are sold globally in more than 75 countries through a
network of subsidiaries, distributors and international offices.
Vans also owns and operates nearly 600 retail locations
around the world. The Vans brand promotes the action sports
lifestyle, youth culture and creative self-expression through the
support of athletes, musicians and artists and through progressive
events and platforms such as the Vans Triple Crown of
Surfing®, the Vans U.S. Open of Surfing,
Vans Pool Party, Vans Custom Culture, Vans
Warped Tour®, and Vans' cultural hub and
international music venue, the House of Vans.
About Americans for the Arts
Americans for the
Arts is the leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts
and arts education in America. With offices in Washington, D.C. and New York City, it has a record of more than 50
years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to
representing and serving local communities and creating
opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate
all forms of the arts. Additional information is available
at www.AmericansForTheArts.org.
About truth
truth® is one of the most
successful and one of the largest national youth tobacco prevention
campaigns. The campaign exposes the tactics of the tobacco
industry, the truth about addiction, and the health effects and
social consequences of smoking. truth gives teens facts
to make their own informed choices about tobacco use and inspires
them to use their social influence and creativity in the fight
against tobacco. The campaign is credited with preventing hundreds
of thousands of teens from starting to smoke, and is working to
make this the generation that ends smoking for good. To learn more,
visit thetruth.com. truth is part of Truth
Initiative, a national public health organization dedicated to
achieving a culture where all youth and young adults reject
tobacco. To learn more about Truth Initiative's work speaking,
seeking and spreading the truth about tobacco,
visit truthinitiative.org.
About Journeys
Journeys is a leader in the teen
specialty retail scene, with more than 800 stores in all 50
states, Puerto Rico and Canada. Journeys uses fashion savvy and
merchandising science to keep in step with the fast-paced footwear
and accessories market for 13- to 22-year-old guys and girls.
Journeys offers a wide variety of trendy, relevant brands that
cater to teens who seek the hottest, new styles. The Journeys store
is more than a retail environment; it's an extension of the teen
lifestyle. From the plasma TVs playing exclusive content and the
latest music videos, to the visual merchandising strategy and
promotions, to the employees whose image and style reflect the
customers' lifestyle and attitude. In addition, Journeys reaches
its customers through www.journeys.com, a mobile
website, catalog, national advertising, strategic cross-promotions,
social media and grass-roots events like The Journeys Noise Tour.
Journeys is, in every way, an attitude you can wear!
Vans, "Off The Wall" Since '66
www.vans.com
youtube.com/vans
instagram.com/vans
facebook.com/vans
twitter.com/vans_66
vans.tumblr.com
Vans: Laura Doherty, (714)
889-3114, Laura_Doherty@vfc.com
Edelman: Parinaz Farzin,
(323) 202-1892, parinaz.farzin@edelman.com
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