These two airport mosaics serve as a welcoming gesture for each visitor to the Sioux Falls Regional Airport. Seen by travelers and locals alike—for all arrivals and departures. My thought was to reflect upon what an airport does in this artwork, what people might be thinking about, and suggest some relationships so these mosaics can help make this a memorable journey, and to extend to you the possibility of visual delight in the imagery.

All journeys, both unexpected and planned, begin with once upon a time. And time, of course, becomes the primary concern for visitors to an airport. So I explore time in a finite sense, with flight times and schedules, and moving these visually into something with more of a sense of timelessness, such as the stars and the people who have danced on the prairie for countless generations. I combined this with a geologic sense of time and permanence portrayed through the landscapes of some of my favorite places around Sioux Falls. I also wanted to play with the idea of things that fly and go up into the sky, so together these elements combine across both mosaics, dancing between the ideas of flight and time.

Special thanks to Katy Isennock (Lakota) champion Fancy Shawl Dancer and Cliff Matias (Kichwa, Taino), Director of Redhawk Native American Arts Council.