Queensland student, Louis Hagemann, has been judged the Australian winner of the annual Toyota Dream Car Art Contest, following more than 2,000 entries from aspiring artists. 12-year-old Louis let his imagination run wild to create a Dream Car of the future, focusing on important environmental issues.
Louis, from Queensland Trinity Lutheran College, said his winning entry was inspired by the Toyota 79 Series LandCruiser and took him six hours to create. Titled Powered by Nature Louis said: “My off-road vehicle is powered by renewable energy, uses solar energy to drive and is covered in plants to help regenerate the air we breathe.”
As the grand prize winner, Louis receives a $2,500 Visa gift voucher for himself and a $2,500 Visa gift voucher for his school.
Toyota Australia Chief Marketing Officer Vin Naidoo said this year’s entries show that kids are really thinking and caring about the current societal issues that concern them. “We received so many extraordinary artistic creations in this year’s contest and it’s such a joy to see that Toyota is inspiring tomorrow’s designers and engineers,” said Naidoo. “It’s also very evident that key societal issues such as environment, sustainability, and happiness are at the forefront of Australian kid’s minds with each drawing portraying a solution to these current issues.”
Prizes were also awarded to the top three entries in each of three age categories – under 8 years, 8-11 years, and 12-15 years – with the winners receiving a $275 Visa gift voucher. The finalist in each age group were:
Under 8 Years Finalists
Austin Cao, age 5, with My Super Rocket Car
Sakura Terauchi, age 7 with Fun Music Bus
Luke Wang, age 7 with 2 in 1 flying car over dream land
8 – 11 Years Finalists
Claudia Fields, age 10, with Toyota mending broken pieces car
Hana Lee, age 10 with SES Toyota
Dana Han age 9 with The Eco-friendly Car
12 – 15 Years Finalists
Sebastian Atra, age 12 with Acoustic Time Machine
Matilda Money, age 15 with Cosmos Exploration Rover
The Toyota Dream Car Art Contest is run in partnership with not-for-profit education resources organisation Cool Australia.