John Wayne Airport

Fresh art at John Wayne Airport

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WAYNE_WonderSlimbyGeorgeJames

Wonder Slim by George James, courtesy Fullerton College

The new art exhibit at John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California shares some ‘hidden treasures’ plucked from the art collections of five Orange County colleges and universities and is on display through August 2015 in the Vi Smith Gallery across from Gates 18-21.

Twentysix Gasoline Stations by Ed Ruscha - art book. Courtesy University of California, Irvine

Twentysix Gasoline Stations by Ed Ruscha – art book. Courtesy University of California, Irvine

The airport’s art program presents intriguing, museum-quality exhibits on a regular basis. Also on exhibit now (through April 2015) are whimsical paintings by Costa Mesa artist Cheryl Bookout –

The Fish in her Party Dress - Cheryl Bookout

The Fish in her Party Dress – Cheryl Bookout

And – always there: Flight of Ideas. This wonderful, large scale three-dimensional sculpture above the baggage carousels in Terminal C is made up of 21 aluminum birds with wing spans up to 14 feet by Beth Nyback. Look closely next time you’re there: the wings of the birds display enlarged portions of multi-colored aeronautical charts.

Flight-of-Ideas

Paintings of currency & postage stamps at John Wayne Airport

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75 paintings of currency and postage stamps by pop artist Robert Dowd (1936-1995), on loan from a private collector, are on display through mid-January 2013 at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California.

You can see more images from the exhibit here.

From the airport notes about the exhibit:

Dowd became interested in art in 1957 when he was stationed at Camp Pendleton and came to Laguna Beach on liberty, encountering the artwork and paintings on view at the Laguna Beach art museum leaving him with an overwhelming desire to paint.

Tune in with antique radios at John Wayne Airport

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As a radio producer, collector and fan of airports, here’s an exhibit that resonates with me completely:

A collection of antique and classic radios are currently on display at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California.

Look for these classics in the Vi Smith Concourse Gallery of Terminal A across from Gates 2 through 5 and in Terminal C across from Gates 18 through 21. They will be there till July 16, 2012.

The exhibition, titled Sound Design, features 86 radios from the 1930s, 40s and 50s, all on loan to the airport from the collection of Mark and Janet Hilbert.

Sonora Model No. 356

John Wayne Airport’s new Terminal C open, with baggage woes

Air Travel, Airport shops, Airports, Baggage, free Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi,

On Monday, November 14, 2011, John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California officially opened its new Terminal C, which offers travelers a new parking structure, new security screening lanes, new gates, new shops, new restaurants, free Wi-Fi, new artwork, workstations and plenty of places to plug in gadgets.

Flight of Ideas - by Beth Nybeck

You can see a map of the new terminal and a list of the new eateries and shops here but, unfortunately, if you’re heading to JWA’s new Terminal C you won’t be able to check your luggage.

Although the new terminal is open for business, the baggage handling system failed a certification test last week. So for now you’ll need to check your luggage in Terminal B.

All in all, the place does look pretty swanky and I’m hoping to visit in person soon. If you get there before I do, please share your thoughts on what you see and send along a few photos.

Tidbits for travelers: airfare tax holiday (sort of) & fresh airport art

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A little bit of this and that for a summer Monday:

Tax holiday on airline tickets – sort of

The U.S. government’s failure to reauthorize the budget for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), means that domestic airlines can’t charge some federal excise taxes on flights until the issue is worked out.

For a while there over the weekend, it looked like travelers would be getting a holiday from several taxes (the 7.5% tax on domestic transportation, the $3.70 domestic segment tax and the $16.30 international arrival/departure tax), but it turned out only some airlines, including Alaska Airlines, Spirit Airlines (surprise!) and Virgin America are passing along the savings.

 

The other airlines? They raised their bases fares so that, in many cases, anyone seeking to buy a ticket would pay what they would have before the FAA shutdown.

Sneaky!

Elsewhere…

If you’re traveling through John Wayne Airport in Orange County, CA before September 12, 2011, look for paintings by Steve Metzger on the departure (upper) level near the security screening areas and on the arrival (lower) level near baggage carousels 1 and 4.

Courtesy Steve Metzger

A professor at Fullerton College and the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, Metzger’s paintings from photos depict “metaphoric icons of the passage of time.” Here’s a link to more images from the Metzger exhibition.

And, on Thursday, July 28, 2011, passengers at Philadelphia International Airport will be able to watch woodworker Roosevelt Bassett turn discarded wood lathe into purses and hats.

Part of the airport’s series of artist demonstrations, Bassett will be at work from 11:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. in the Terminal B-C Food Court.

If you’re not passing through the PHL on Thursday, don’t worry. There’s an exhibition of Bassett’s wood handbags in Terminal B.