Public Art

On The Air  2000

San Francisco International Airport Arrivals Lobby

San Francisco International Airport
San Francisco International Airport
Terrazzo design master plan.
Terrazzo design master plan.
View of terrazzo and medallions.
View of terrazzo and medallions.
Medallion detail.
Medallion detail.
Detail of northern Europe.
Detail of northern Europe.
View of air currents (in colored bands)
View of air currents (in colored bands)

The project serves many purposes. First, to identify the building from the street with a sense of the buildingʼs contents and its purpose. Secondly, to portray animal care as an essential human activity. And finally, to place the mythos of these pets in the minds of its patrons, to connect them to the long lineage of our connection with these beings. by colored curvilinear “zones”. These isobars are pictures of areas of high and low pressure that occur in the atmosphere. These isobars are made out of specially mixed colors of terrazzo that are poured on site. The colors are separated by silver zinc divider strips. The second element are bronze divider strips that depict the outlines of the land masses of the earth. These diagrammatic lines are 3/16” wide and made of yellow brass. Thirdly, 182 12 inch diameter silvered bronze sand-cast plaques are placed at the location of cities with major international airports. The designs are derived from pilot charts used for reference to land and take-off from these locations. The visitor walking on top of the floor at first encounters the pattern of isobars, then sees the “touchdown” points for airplanes around the world. One can literally traverse the earth, walking “on the air” and trace one’s path from destination to destination.