The Secret Behind the Suspense: How the Senior Banner Was Made

As you just saw, the Senior Banner was revealed to the whole school on Prize Day, and the audience erupted in cheers. But how did we get here? Who puts the time and effort into creating a banner for each graduating class? This year, Studio Art III and the Senior Banner Committee have banded together to make this collaborative piece.

Each year, the senior class creates a new senior banner to leave their mark and they are displayed all over the Hopkins campus. “It has truly become a sort of summative time capsule,” Mr. Byron, visual arts teacher and ski coach at Hopkins, explained. Gabe Ciminello ‘26, a member of this year's Banner Committee, shared this sentiment, stating he has “a great understanding of what makes [the Class of ‘26] special: [their] collaborative tenacity, creative energy, and unceasing kindness.” It was because of this that he wanted to help encapsulate it “into a memory” that will live on at Hopkins. Mateus Witczak ‘26 added that the banner acts as a mini “story of the past 4-6 years of the class…in one thing.” Julia Van Der Aue ‘26, a member of Studio Art III, similarly stated: “making this banner is definitely an exciting project, but also a reminder that my time at Hopkins is coming to an end.” 

The banner committee is composed of 12 seniors who “represent a diverse cross section” of the Class of 2026, according to Byron. The committee was assembled on May 1, while the whole product was due on June 1. Byron noted that the point of this steering committee was to “get larger buy-in and agency” in the process for the seniors, in hope of creating a piece that appeals to everyone, as well as limit the amount of feedback given at one time.

When producing the banner itself, Ella Rinaldi ’26, a member of Studio Art III, found a certain “pressure” to make a successful banner, but she noted “collaboration with our Banner Committee helps.” Van Der Aue, however, felt “a significantly larger amount of stress than compared to a normal art project” because “creating this banner is such a huge responsibility” and she wants her grade to be proud of it. However, Ciminello only hoped it was “symbolic of everything” that the Class of 2026 has accomplished. Witczak included that the banner gives him a sense of “finality” this year, whereas in years past he has simply considered the banners a "cool" part of Hopkins culture, and not “something that will be [his] last mark on Hopkins.” 

The garage of a residential house owned by Hopkins is “set up as a studio” for the duration of May, and the banner itself is about “5ft by 9ft,” Byron explained. Then, Studio Art III students have a “solid week to get all the paint on the canvas,” Byron said. While Byron thought “it may be just another deadline in their Hopkins experience,” he similarly believed it is an enjoyable job. Banner making has been incorporated into the Studio III curriculum, due to its fast turnaround time and its role as a representation of “client-driven artwork,” as Byron said. Van Der Aue added to this as this is her “first time having ‘clients’” and that, for her whole life, she has “pretty much always just made art for [herself].” She found this new experience of having to “appeal to a much larger audience” with her art slightly nerve-racking.

The banner itself, Byron commented, is sometimes more “Hopkins-centric,” but in other years, students make a more media-inspired piece, subtly highlighting Hopkins themes. Van Der Aue remarked “some past banners were a way to represent Hopkins as a whole” but now banners are more focused on “being more of an individual representation of the class.” Ciminello found that “a mix of both is ideal” to create “a banner that represents the year and its senior class.”

In the end, as a product of the collaboration and hard work of Studio Art III students and the Banner Committee, the banner is revealed and the “veil of secrecy,” Witczak explained, is lifted.