More Public Art at Piedmont Triad International Airport

    Jan. 20, 2017
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    Visitors to the Piedmont Triad International Airport may notice a new, striking touch of culture in the terminal building as they make their way through security lines before boarding their flights.

    A permanent sculpture featuring diamond-shaped glass pieces fitted into a steel mesh has been integrated into the screen wall separating the waiting areas from the security areas at each end of the airport terminal. The sculpture pieces were installed last week.

    The title of the artwork is Lift, by Raleigh artist Matt McConnell. It is intended to express the motion and flow surrounding flight and air travel, according to the artist. The wire mesh holds 40 pieces of diamond-shaped, kiln-fused glass in various sizes and shades of blue.

    “This was a capital infrastructure project that was accomplished by using a North Carolina artist to design the solution,” said Kevin Baker, Executive Director of the Airport Authority. “We like the idea of having art integrated into the structure of the building whenever possible.”

    The artwork is only one of a number of examples of public art that you can find in all areas of the airport. Airport Marketing Manager Stephanie Freeman began working three years ago with a public art committee made up of community members and artists in an effort to create an environment at the airport that reflects the culture and spirt of the Triad and North Carolina.

    The “Art in the Airport” project is also part of a larger, long-term effort to modernize the look of the airport and to create an optimal experience for passengers and other visitors, Baker said. The Airport Authority has committed itself to creating an airport that people will not only want to use, but one they will highly recommend to others.

    Over the past five years, the airport has improved security areas, remodeled the terminal building interior, added ultra-high speed Wi-Fi, built charging stations into seating areas, added large graphics highlighting regional attractions and added monitors and flight tracking screens. The airport has flat screen TVs at every gate and new food concessions, including Starbucks.

    The airport has also built an impressive catalog of public art that includes everything from hanging sculpture, to landscape art, to furniture, to paintings created by local students. In 2016 alone, the airport added five outdoor sculptures, an ongoing exhibition of six works by Durham artist, Vandorn Hinnant, www.lightweavings.com,18 works by High Point native Lucy Davis Phillips, www.lucydavisphillips.com and an installation by Asheville Artist Kenn Kotara, www.kotarastudio.com on both the upper and lower levels of the interior of the terminal building.