Giant Flamingo Emerges From Floor Of Main Terminal Of Airport

TAMPA, FL — People flying into Tampa for a visit expect to see exotic birds —leggy 4-foot-tall sandhill cranes casually moseying down the sidewalk, pelicans hanging out at the pier waiting for a chance to scoop up fish in their ample beaks or egrets unfurling their 5-foot, snow-white wings and taking flight across the water.

But soon visitors won't have to leave Tampa International Airport to a familiar Florida feathered friend.

In fact, it will be hard to miss the 21-foot-tall flamingo rising up out the airport's main terminal.

The flamingo is a massive sculpture called "Home" by artist Matthew Mazzotta. Once completed, the floor-to-ceiling immersive sculpture depicting a bright pink flamingo dipping its head beneath the surface of the water will be the centerpiece of a comprehensive public art exhibit that rivals most art galleries.

The giant bird’s head, neck and legs are now in place near The Shoppes at Bayshore at the airport and Mazzota expects to have the bird completed in late April or early May.

The head-turning sculpture, which has garnered national attention since plans were first unveiled, uses metal panels and lighting attached to the ceiling to create the illusion of being underwater.

Mazzota's proposal for "Home" was among more than 700 public art proposals submitted from around the world, but Chris Minner, executive vice president of marketing and communications at TPA and a member of the airport's public art committee, said the choice of the iconic Florida bird was a no-brainer.

"Tampa International Airport has always been a champion of public art as a way to welcome our visitors and give them a sense of wonder and whimsy when they arrive in our beautiful region," said Minner. "We’re certain that ‘Home’ will help create memories and inspire people of all ages who begin and end their travel journeys at TPA."

The completion of the $520,000 art installation will take several more weeks as ceiling panels are installed to create the underwater illusion with light dappling the floor in hints of blue, orange, purple and white light, changing throughout the day to follow the time of day.

Once completed, visitors will be encouraged to interact with and even touch the sculpture as they immerse themselves in the flamingo's habitat.

All the 21-foot sculptural elements (flamingo head, neck, legs and feet) are designed to be as life-like as possible and were produced by hand-sculpting each part at full scale and then casting them in a polyester resin and fiberglass composite. Rings of floor bumpers around each foot and head mimic the rings of water rippling on the floor.

With the larger-than-life scale of "Home," visitors will be able to see the sculpture from throughout the terminal.

While "Home" will be the airport's largest art installation, it certainly isn't the only public art intended to bring Florida's natural environment indoors.

Seven new art commissions were added in Phase I of the airport’s master expansion and renovation plans launched in 2018.

In Phase II, now underway, there's additional artwork from 10 more world-renowned artists: Jason Bruges, Claudia Comte, Jason Hackenwerth, Jason Middlebrook, Sheryl Oring, Soo Sunny Park, Aaron Stephan, Catherine Wagner and Janaina Tschape, along with Mazzota.

Six of them were installed last year, including:

"Paths Rising," created and installed by Aaron Stephan in 2021. This ceiling sculpture in the main terminal walkway to the SkyConnect Station is composed of more than 600 basswood and aluminum ladders, implying a window to a portal to an otherworldly place.

Surrounding the ladders, the existing lower wall of the oculus is coated with a gold leaf finish that creates a glow enhanced by the lighting above, paying homage to Florida's lush natural environment.

Also completed last year by artist Jason Middlebrook is a mosaic tile and stained-glass piece named "Florida Sunset" in the Blue Express curbside building. The mosaic mural depicts oversized native flowers, insects and a snowy egret at sunset.

"My goal was to create a glass tile painting that inspires people to value the biodiversity of Florida," Middlebrook said. "Florida has a variety of plant communities from the wetlands, the seashore and the hardwood forest, to name a few. I selected 10 species that are diverse in shape, size and color. These 10 species are vital and common within varied plant communities of central and south Florida."

"Tropicalismo Revisited" by Catherine Wagner, also located in the Blue Express curbside building, is composed of 120 individual photographic laser-etched green aluminum panels in four shapes composing one large photographic image of Florida plant life.

Look up into the SkyCenter atrium to see the kinetic sculpture, "Cove," by Jason Hackenwerth. While the inspiration for "Cove" was a coral reef, Hackenwerth's intention was to make forms that remained ambiguous and ever-changing, mimicking the natural curves and shapes of ocean creatures.

Hackenwerth said the sculpture is intended to jolt visitors out of the hypnotic hustle and bustle of the airport and give them a contemplative moment.

"As people come and go from one destination to another, their movements are directed. We move in patterns. Carpets get worn in particular places. Trails form. Our thoughts and emotions work together to guide us through space and time," Hackenwerth said. "Only when we encounter a surprise, some unexpected anomaly, do we pause. At that moment we are connected to our true nature."

"Nebula," by Soo Sunny Park, is a stainless steel and acrylic sculpture that flows from the ceiling of the SkyCenter atrium and is intended to evoke a serene, peaceful feeling in the energetic airport environment.

Still to come in the winter of 2024 is "Starfish Family/Dancing Algae" by Claudia Comte in the future Airside D. This white Carrera marble sculpture with a graphic wall painting depicts the image of a beach, a resting space in which passengers are invited to approach and even sit on marble starfish that seem to be in repose by the sea.

Planned for the Red Express curbside building in the winter of 2024 is an acrylic painting on a milled aluminum panel by Janaina Tschape. The inspiration comes from Tampa's natural lush vegetation.

Also to be installed at the end of 2024 is "Ascending Clouds" by Jason Bruges. Created using an LCD light box and modules, the work uses a composite liquid crystal material specially developed by Bruges to embody the dynamic cloud formations and weather patterns of the skies above, almost as if the visitor is looking out of a plane window.

These new sculptures will join familiar artwork in the airport including E. Joseph McCarty's 1999 "Tropical Fish Tile Collage" in the red baggage claim of the main terminal.

Roy Butler's 1971 sculptures of 63 seabirds crafted from copper, nickel, silver and bronze that take flight over the heads of airport visitors were relocated from the main terminal to Airside A in 2018. Each bird weights about 30 pounds and has a wingspan of almost 7 feet.

Another favorite installation is the series of 22 mosaic medallions made of glass and stone by Kristen Jones and Andrew Ginzel in 2005 and installed in the white marble floor of Airside C.

The medallions range in size from 48 inches to 12 inches in diameter and depict Florida's rivers, lakes and ocean.

Click here to see all the public art at the airport.