The flamingo (dot 3770) isn’t the only intentional art at Tampa International. When the Airside E Terminal was renovated, it was designed to highlight seven murals created in 1939 by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) for the then-new Tampa airport.
It took a lot of work to restore the murals to displayable condition. They were improperly stored, moldy, adhered to concrete, warped, stretched, and discolored — but now they prominently tell the story of the dawning of aviation with murals of Archimedes, Icarus and Daedalus, the Montgolfier Brothers, Otto Lilienthal, the Wright Brothers, Tony Jannus, and the Art of Flight.
The WPA murals tell a story — not only of aviation in general, but they represent the history of the airport itself. How wonderful that they were preserved instead of forgotten.
When you are doing your next renovation project, before buying new, think about what already exists in your organization that can be showcased — both for its artistic value as well as historical storytelling. You can achieve a dual purpose by bringing some of your archives to the forefront, especially if you have the foresight to plan your renovation around them as TPA did.
