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Terminal 4 Museum Exhibitions

Terminal 4 Exhibitions

Diversity in the Desert: Expanding the Airport's Art Collection

Through Summer 2024

Pollenizer by Tania Bolin

Image caption: Tania Bolin, Pollenizer, ©2017, acrylic paint, graphite, image transfer, paper on canvas, 24 x 24

Overview

As Sky Harbor grows, so does its vast art collection. It all began in 1962 with one massive 75’-foot-wide mural at Terminal 2 and the airport’s collection has continued growing ever since. The designs of Terminals 3 and 4 incorporated spaces for art with large-scale paintings and sculptures as well as architecturally integrated works.

The Phoenix Airport Museum began in 1988 to enhance the guest experience by producing exhibitions throughout Sky Harbor and maintaining the ever-increasing art collection. Today, the collection includes more than 1,000 pieces in all mediums, styles and sizes.

On view for the first time are 40 newly acquired artworks in a wide variety of styles and techniques ranging from colorful abstracts to realistic portraiture to Southwest themes. These new additions to the airport's collection were purchased through the city of Phoenix’s percent for art program.

Contemporary Arizona artists created art in various mediums using traditional and unconventional materials including cactus spines, bones, glass and metal. Enjoy these paintings, drawings, sculptures, prints and fiber works showcasing Arizona’s rich art and culture representing Diversity in the Desert.

Featured Artists

David Emitt Adams
Rachel Bess
Tania Bolin
Brent Bond
Brian Boner
Alexandra Bowers
Manny Burruel
Jennifer Caldwell
Christine Cassano
Jason Chakravarty
Bill Dambrova
Carol Eckert
Edgar Fernandez
Fausto Fernandez
Frank Gonzales
Erika Lynne Hanson
Carla Keaton
Mayme Kratz
Carolyn Lavender
Aryana Londir
Monica Aissa Martinez
Carrie Marill
Kathryn Maxwell
Mark McDowell
Mary Meyer
Anthony Pessler
Christy Puetz
Travis Rice
Aaron Rothman
Melissa Sclafani
Mary Shindell
Beth Shook
Laura Spalding Best
Kaori Takamura
Jeremy Thomas
Clare Verstegen
Teresa Villegas
Jim Waid
Wendy Willis
Yuko Yabuki

Location

  • Terminal 4, level 3, gallery

 

Creative Sustainability

Through April 2024

Location

  • Terminal 4, level 2, near ticketing

Overview

Artists possess a unique ability to see beauty and potential in the most unexpected of items that they are often drawn to for their texture, color or memory. In the hands of artists, vintage metal serving platters, used postage stamps and outdated fashion magazines become extraordinary works of art.

Ten artists found innovative solutions to reduce waste and promote reuse. While some artists create paintings directly on found objects or assemble them into sculptures, others cut and shape items to use as art material. Artists accrue personal collections of beads, buttons, tins and cherished mementos just waiting for the opportune moment incorporate them in art. Some scour thrift stores or junk yards seeking to give new life to discarded items, experiencing the thrill of discovery in finding something that sparks inspiration.

This exhibition celebrates the power of an artist’s imagination to repurpose ordinary materials into works of art, imbuing them with new meaning and value. Whether they have retrofitted an old nightstand to become an intricate sculptural work or rolled magazine paper into a wearable masterpiece, each artwork reminds us that art can be made from just about anything and to consider the impact of Creative Sustainability.

 

Creative Sustainability supports the idea of waste reduction and recycling initiatives. The City of Phoenix Aviation Department has almost doubled the rate of waste diverted from the landfill in the last 10 years. The Department plans to achieve Zero Waste by 2050 through an emphasis on using less raw material, reusing and repairing before recycling and procuring for longevity.

Artwork by Rand Carlson

Featured Artists

Eleanor Bostwick
Barbara Brandel
Rand Carlson
Millie Ehrlich
Susan Folwell
Steve Gompf
Suzanne Klotz
Emily Long
Laura Spalding Best
Shelly White

Stories from the Mother Road: Photography by Terrence Moore

Through November 2023

Location

  • Terminal 4, level 3, center near food court

Overview

Travel can be more about the journey than the destination, and hitting the road is a great way to have that experience. Road trips bring about opportunities for personal exploration, discovery and stories.

America’s most famous highway, Route 66, the Mother Road, has lured travelers west since it first opened in 1926. At one time this iconic route, running from Chicago to Los Angeles, symbolized independence, optimism and new beginnings for many. With interstate and superhighways providing a more efficient way to travel, Route 66 gradually fell out of use. Today, all is not lost as there is still much to see and experience along this historic road.

Tucson photographer Terrence Moore has had an affinity with Route 66, since he first traveled on it at nine years old when his family moved from Minnesota to California. For more than 60 years he has had a personal connection with Route 66.

This exhibition presents Moore’s images from his many travels along this classic highway as a professional photographer for more than 50 years. Sites along Route 66 may continually change through time, but they still hold much allure to the intrepid traveler. Curio shops, vintage motels, neon signs and quirky roadside attractions from a bygone era all come to represent Stories from the Mother Road.

“Much of my life was formed by the open road; that includes Route 66 as well as many other U.S. highways that all inspire adventure. The feeling of rolling down the highway brings excitement, curiosity and discovery that I am itching to share through my pictures.”

Terrence Moore, Amboy, California, 1988, photograph

Beyond the Studio: Artists of the Sky Train

Through September 2023

Annoyed by the Screaming of the Whales

Location

  • Terminal 4, level 3, eight cases on the east and west ends

Overview

Art making is often thought of as a solitary activity with artists working by themselves in their studios. The art filling the public spaces of the airport’s PHX Sky Train® is different. It was made by artists working in teams with hundreds of skilled thinkers, builders and installers.

This exhibition celebrates the art of the PHX Sky Train® by presenting artworks by artists who designed large-scale public art along the train route. These seven artists transitioned from their typical studio practices of painting, printmaking or weaving to work collaboratively with a large team of design and construction specialists to create intricate terrazzo floors or a luminous glass mural.  

Together, the art integrated into the Sky Train’s buildings and structures remind us that beauty and pleasure are central to our experience of travel and Arizona. Take a ride on the PHX Sky Train® for memorable views and to immerse yourself in artworks that were created Beyond the Studio.

Featured Artists

Anne Coe
Bill Dambrova
Daniel Martin Diaz
Fausto Fernandez
Frank Gonzales
Daniel Mayer
Janelle L. Stanley

Image caption: Bill DambrovaAnnoyed by the Screaming of the Whales, 2021, oil on canvas, 7 x 7', courtesy of artist

Trajectory Print Portfolio Project

Ongoing

Location

  • Terminal 4, level 3, near the center

Overview:

Phoenix Institute of Contemporary Art (phICA) is a nonprofit organization with a goal of helping artists advance their careers. Through phICA’s financial support, initiatives and opportunities, artists expand their reach and knowledge.

This exhibition presents a diverse array of artworks resulting from phICA’s Trajectory Print Portfolio Project. Arizona artists applied for the opportunity to enhance their artistic skills by experiencing printmaking. For many of these artists, this is new territory as they typically work in mediums like painting, drawing or sculpture.

These 12 local artists, using the technique of relief printing, worked with Master Printer Brent Bond at Santo Press in Scottsdale, AZ. Relief printing is a process where the artist carves their design into a block of wood, linoleum or some other material's surface. The image is transferred from the raised surface onto paper by running the fully inked block and paper through a printing press.

This compelling collection showcases these artists’ existing creative practices enhanced with newfound techniques offered by printmaking. It is a beautiful snapshot of the richness and diversity of skilled artists at work in our local community and is testament to phICA’s dedication to support artists, their vision and artistic Trajectory.

Featured Artists


Darrin Armijo-Wardle
Brian Boner
Bill Dambrova
Rigo Flores
Hector Fernando Garcia
Shachi Kale
Mary Meyer
Ann Morton
Christy Puetz
Vo Vera Sapienza
Papay Solomon
Chris Vena

J.B. by Papay Solomon

Papay Solomon, J.B., ©2021, hand-cut key image from PVC sheet and multi-block hand-cut linoleum, 17.75 x 14.5”, Phoenix Airport Museum collection

Form Over Function: Ceramics from the Phoenix Airport Museum's Collection

Ongoing

Guinomi Six Sake Cups by Anitra Allen

Location

  • Terminal 4, level 3 near center

Ceramic artists sometimes create containers that are more about aesthetics rather than their use. They may design pots, bowls, cups and vases that challenge conventional form, either by deviating from a traditional shape or defying utility altogether. As art objects, their vessels draw upon the expressive nature of sculpture.

This exhibition features ten artists who have taken a unique approach to functional objects. While some artists shape or carve clay to emphasize texture, others create cups with fractures and vases with small openings that would otherwise make an impractical object. These artists contribute to the enduring legacy of the vessel, but they are transcending tradition to favor Form Over Function.

Featured Artists

Anitra Watley Allen
Sharon Brush
Victor Curran
Anne Goldman
Maurice Grossman
Michael Prepsky
Don Reitz
Patricia Sannit
Junya Shao
Greg Wenz

Image caption: Anitra Watley AllenGuinomi: Sake Cups, 1997, glazed earthenware and porcelain, Phoenix Airport Museum Collection

100 Years, 100 Ranchers
Photographs by Scott Baxter

Ongoing

Location

  • Terminal 4, level 1, international walkway (post-security)

Terminal 4, level 1, international walkway (post-security)

Wide open landscapes dotted with grazing cattle and sheep herded by the rancher on horseback have become an iconic symbol of our western culture. For more than 100 years the ranching tradition has been an integral part of Arizona’s history and growth. In celebration of Arizona’s Centennial in 2012, Scott Baxter photographed 100 Arizona ranchers whose families have been ranching for a century or more.

For more than ten years Baxter has been traveling to ranches across the state, getting to know the individual ranchers and their operations. He chose to use large-format cameras, a traditional process which takes time and allowed him to engage his subjects in a personal manner. Using black and white film Baxter captures a sense of timelessness and directs the viewer’s full attention to the subject in the frame.

The strength and independent nature of this unique group of Arizonans is apparent in their portraits. Baxter’s collection of photographs is a tribute to Arizona’s ranching legacy by preserving an important piece of Arizona character and history.

Image caption: Scott Baxter, Shannon Marie Nicholson Bales, 2011, Corporal Stripe Ranch, Cochise County near Willcox, AZ ranching family since 1885, Phoenix Airport Museum Collection