The Columbia Regional Airport terminal art program is officially underway after city council passed a resolution on it last Monday. The airport staff will work with the Commission on Cultural Affairs and the Standing Committee on Public Art to select an artist.
The program is funded through the Percent for Art ordinance, which designates one percent of the terminal construction budget to public art. Because the estimated cost of the new terminal is $18.8 million, the artwork budget will be nearly $189,000.
The artist would be awarded about $150,550 in commission. Office of Cultural Affairs Manager Sarah Dresser expects the selection and implementation of the artwork in the airport will be a multi-year process.
Both committees will work with airport staff to send out proposals, review submissions of previous work and gather public feedback before selecting an artist. Dresser says the artwork can be anything from hanging fixtures to expansive murals.
“We try to, at least in our calls for artist, be open to what kinds of art we want to consider,” Dresser said. “There’s not necessarily a specific vision we might have.”
Dresser says that artwork in the airport can benefit both the creativity of the artist and tourism to the city.
“We want to allow the space to spark the creativity of the artists who apply,” Dresser said. “Columbia is designated as a creative community. That is something that we want to lead with when people arrive.”