Los Angeles International Airport

Travel Tidbits for the holiday weekend

 The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) expects to screen more than 18 million passengers at U.S airports over the Memorial Day travel period, which stretches from May 23 to May 29, about 6.4% more than in 2023.

If you’re one of the holiday travelers, here are some fresh art and amenities to look for at airports along the way.

Art at LAX Airport

It’s been about a year since LAX finally created an airside connection between all its terminals. That means ticketed passengers don’t have to go back through security to make a connecting flight in another terminal and can access all of the airport’s shops, dining venues and art.

Among the newest art installations at LAX is “Flora (Flores amplificati), by Laura Hull.

For the installation, Hull digitally manipulated and layered photographs of plant life commonly found in Southern California to create a digital mural printed on vinyl. Look for it in the hallway that connects Terminals 1 and 2 post-security.

Find a full list of all the permanent and temporary artwork at LAX on the LAX Art Program site.

(Laura Hull, “Flora (Flores amplificati),” Courtesy Los Angeles World Airports)

Beer – and more – at Bradley International Airport (BDL)

Beercode Kitchen & Bar has opened at Bradley International Airport (BDL) near Hartford, CT just in time for the busy holiday weekend. The gastropub is open in the Gates 21-30 concourse and is the first sit-down restaurant on that concourse. It’s open by 4 am daily for breakfast and has a lineup of local craft beer and other beverages.

Creatively Remade art objects at Denver Int’l Airport

Denver International Airport’s (DEN) newest exhibition, Creatively Remade: Upcycled Art and Design, features a wide range of art, fashion and functional objects made from materials that would have otherwise been discarded. 

The exhibit stretches through several areas of the airport, including Ansbacher Hall (before A-Bridge security), Concourse B East between gates B60 and B62, on level three of Concourse C, and east and west baggage claim.

Here are just a few of the pieces you might see.

Airports are ready for Halloween. Are you?

Halloween happens mid-week this year and many airports around the country took the opportunity to celebrate this past week.

The Los Angeles Airport Police (LAXPD) at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) hosted a Trunk-or-Treat Halloween event on Saturday (Oct 28) for the community with games, food, and decorated Halloween-theme police vehicles.

On Sunday, passengers at Denver International Airport (DEN) were treated to a parade of therapy animals from the Canine Animal Therapy Squad (CATS) all dressed up in their Halloween gear.

More Halloween events at airports near you

There will be lots of Halloween happenings at airports throughout this week as well. Here are a few to get us started. Let us know what we’re missing.

New things to love at LAX

Los Angeles Int’l Airport Solves a Problem

You can now walk between all LAX terminals post-security

One of the (many) irritating things about making a connection at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) has been the inability to walk between all the terminals once you are post-security.

Finally, that’s fixed.

With the opening of a post-security connector between Terminal 3 and the Tom Bradley International Terminal (TBIT) ticketed passengers as well as airline and airport employees can now access all LAX terminals once they are past security.

A post-security walk at LAX is about 2 miles from Terminal 1 to Terminal 8, but once you’re post-security you’ll not only be able to more easily make connections between airlines, but you’ll be able to access the shops, restaurants, lounges, artwork, entertainment, and other amenities in all the terminals.

Where will you walk at LAX?

New amenities pop up all the time at LAX.

And some of the newest are at the West Gates of the Tom Bradley International Terminal.

There’s a cool new LEGO store, as well as an InMotion store for electronics, a TMZ newsstand and gift shop and, soon, a See’s Candies store.

New dining venues include the first airport restaurant from celebrity chef Guy Fieri’s brand Chicken Guy! as well as Japanese noodle eatery Santouka, a Burger King, and, soon a Spanish-style tapas restaurant called Navarre.

Museum Monday at LAX and SFO airports

Say “Hi, Barbie!” at Flight Path Museum at LAX

A visit to the Flight Path Museum and Learning Center at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is an avgeek delight anytime.

Located on LAX property, a short drive or taxi ride from the terminals, the museum includes one of the largest airline uniform collections, as well as space exploration memorabilia, a great research library, and a wide range of commercial aviation artifacts.

Right now is an especially good time to visit because the museum has Barbiemania. In honor of the new Barbie movie, the museum is showing an exhibit of aviation-themed Barbies and Barbie accessories, including Barbie dolls inspired by famous aviators, including Bessie Coleman and Amelia Earhart.

Unconventional enamels at SFO Airport

The SFO Museum at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) oversees twenty-five sites throughout the airport terminals. So if you’ve got a long walk to your gate or a long layover at SFO, it’s a good bet something will catch your eye.

One of the newest exhibitions at SFO features the unconventional enameled art of June Schwarcz (1918–2015) on view in the Harvey Milk Terminal 1, Departures Level 2, Galley 1 E now through early May 2024.

Here’s an intro to Schwarcz’s work from the SFO Museum;

Inspired by nature and fashion, as well as abstract, African, and Asian art, Schwarcz developed unique metalworking techniques, always experimenting and embracing complex technical challenges. She initially worked with copper panels and spun-copper bowls, infusing them with her own interpretation of traditional enameling. During the 1960s, Schwarcz pioneered electroforming, an innovative method that involved electroplating pieces made from thin copper foil. Schwarcz focused on sculptural vessels and when asked about her abstract forms, she explained, “They simply don’t hold water.” 

(Images of June Schwarcz’s artwork courtesy of SFO Museum and the collection of Forrest L. Merrill)

Light, Space & Sound at LAX Airport

International arriving passengers moving through the West Gates tunnel in the Tom Bradley International Terminal (TBIT) at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) pass by a series of art pieces exploring light sound, and space.

The exhibition, put together by dublab and the LAX Art Program, presents work by pioneers and innovators of one of Los Angeles’ homegrown visual art movements, the Light & Space Movement.

The Light & Space Movement, which has been called ‘California Minimalism,’ is an outgrowth of the NY Minimalist art movement and features work that uses light, color, Space Age materials, and technology.

Luminaries of Light & Space at LAX has an audio component too. Dublab’s Orchestrina features 30 composers “pushing the sonic envelope forward.”

Read more about this exhibit here.

(Gisela Colón – Parabolic Monolith (Borealis)

(Hap Tivey – Flame)

,