One of the first privileges allotted to the senior class is the ability to paint an assigned parking spot, with free-range regarding color, design, and content.

The personalized spot is a way for seniors to express their creativity and individuality. Each parking spot, just as creative as the last, is an opportunity to demonstrate personalities, interests, and passions. 

Despite lacking the prerequisite qualifications for judging art, or anything, for that matter, I’ve taken it upon myself to rank the top 5 senior parking spots of this year. 

The rubric to determine who deserves these bragging rights was pretty simple: Which are the most creative, colorful, and aesthetically pleasing?  The following selections are in particular order, but please vote at the end of the story (we’ll be sharing the winner next week via social media).   

Our first selection is Layla Smith’s vibrant and abstract art-themed parking space:

Originally, Smith claimed she had wanted her spot to be something funny and advanced, until she saw the price of paint. As a result of this skyrocketing paint inflation, she chose to make her spot more simplistic and cute.

“I wouldn’t necessarily have said my parking spot represented me as an individual, as it was just a basic design, but with how it turned out, it definitely showed the hard work my brother and I put into it.”

With this, Smith explained that price wasn’t the only thing that had limited her creativity, but also the heat. On the “verge of heatstroke,” Smith wished she could have hired workers to paint the spot for her. Her best advice for future painters was to do the activity with friends because it was super hot, and it was nice to have friends help out or distract her from the boiling temperatures.

In Smith’s opinion, she had nominated Betsy Neal’s parking spot as one of her personal favorites.

Next up is Betsy Neal’s creative cartoon design:

Neal claimed that she had loved to paint, which was why she chose to create something unique and colorful. Along with this, she mentioned how she loved wearing colorful clothes and jewelry, which was why she wanted to make her painting super colorful and fun. Neal, when asked what parking spot was her personal favorite, nominated Jackie Rappold because of the spot’s vibrant colors.

“Bring a tent, a fan, a hat, some kind of shade. The heat is no joke!” Neal advised the upcoming seniors.

Following Neal, is Lucy Anderson’s bright and sunny piece:

Anderson explained that her reasoning behind her colorful, sun-inspired spot was that she had wanted her space to be something she was confident she could paint well. Her love for nature and sunshine had also played a major factor in her design decisions. With that, Anderson connected with her parking spot because it expressed her artistic style. In regards to underclassmen, for next year Anderson similarly suggested bringing a canopy tent, lots of water, and being prepared to make multiple trips to buy paint.

“I thought Betsy Neal’s parking spot was pretty rad,” Anderson claimed.

Next up is Sydney Moore’s refreshing and fruity Celsius art:

Moore, famously known around the school for carrying her daily Celsius, decided to represent her love for the flavorful drinks in her parking spot.

“I was trying to find out what fit my personality the best, and throughout my whole high school year, I had had an energy drink in my hand every single day.”

If anything, Moore expressed that she would have added more detail and color to the cans to make them more realistic. However, one simplistic design Moore liked a lot had been Amari Clark’s. Lastly, Moore advised the underclassmen to make their future parking spots unique and representative of themselves, and also to choose the colors wisely.

Last but not least is Tiffanie Tran’s expensive present:

Tiffanie Tran, or ‘Tiffany & Co.,’ had decided to paint her spot after the designer brand since it incorporated her name (despite the different spelling). Tran also thought the colors and bow had been really unique and cute. If she could have changed one thing, Tran would have added jewelry or a diamond on top of the Tiffany & Co. box design.

“I think everyone’s parking spaces were amazing,” Tran said. “It was hard to pick the best parking spot, but a couple of really good parking spots were Sydney, Betsy, and Lucy’s.”

Finally, Tran advised underclassmen to make sure they had at least two gallons of paint for the base color, especially if they were covering up a previous person’s design. Also, to make sure to start painting in the early morning since it did get very hot in the afternoon.

So there you have it: the top 5 selections. Vote on the poll below!