MASSPORT: Logan Airport: About Logan: Artport

Q & A With Artist Jane Goldman

Q. How did you get involved in this project?
A. Three years ago, I received a call from Urbanarts, a Boston-based non-profit public arts agency. They invited me to be a finalist for an exciting competition: to create artwork for the new public spaces at Logan Airport. This project is part of Massport's modernization of the airport for the 21st century.

Q. What were the guidelines for the project?
A. The competing artists were briefed on the project and given this mission: to complement the elegance of the new walkways designed by Cambridge 7 Associates, to integrate the artwork into the design of the walkways, to give a sense of place so that the Logan experience feels uniquely like Boston (as opposed to, say, Phoenix) and by extension as the gateway to the New England region.

Q. How did you arrive at the concept of Atlantic Journey?
A. For some time I had been painting tidal pools on the West Coast of Ireland and was thus completely immersed in underwater imagery. The theme of the Atlantic Ocean was a logical evolution.

Q. How did you decide on terrazzo for the floor?
A. We were given two choices of materials, tile or terrazzo. Terrazzo offers a wide color range, luminosity, and is more compatible with curvilinear designs than tile.

Q. How did you decide on the design and what creatures to include?
A. The creatures, indigenous to the New England region, were chosen for the beauty of their shape, or for their familiarity (eg lobster), or for their unfamiliarity (like the naked sea butterfly, eliciting, I hope, the "Wow! What's that?" response.

I wanted a random feel to the placement of creatures, to give the illusion of traveling through water, not knowing what you'll encounter next.

Myriad discussions with the Cambridge 7 Architects solved aesthetic and technical problems such as how far apart the critters would be and how to depict them in the point of view of looking down as though you are in a glass-bottom boat.

Organizing the sea creatures along a depth gradient developed through consulting with a marine biologist who teaches at Wellesley College. Thanks to Professor Marianne Moore, I had access to additional experts in the field from the Woods' Hole Oceanographic Institute and MIT.

Q. How did the creatures come to life?
A. After researching them, I developed color maquettes in watercolor. Line drawings were then scanned into the architectural plans, which served as working drawings for the fabrication of the creatures' outlines. DePaoli Mosaic, the terrazzo company, and I designed 41 custom colors. Working for almost a year, DePaoli then installed my design in the floors of the walkways.

Q. What was your main element of design?
A. Light, which I've always taken personally (as a child of Texas where the overwhelming physical facts are stark contrasts of light and dark, and heat) is generally the starting point of my work as an artist. Here I'm dealing with the murky depths and cool of the North Atlantic (which is green and gray much more often than blue.) But from the central point of beach in the middle of the parking garage to the end of one of the walkways (eg entering Terminal A) the background colors go from very light to very dark. So in some instances the sea creatures stand out in high relief (brilliant red sea star against a dark background), and in others,like the skate, there is low contrast between the creature and background, creating the illusion of the skate burying itself on the ocean bottom.

Q. What do you hope the traveler will experience?
A. I hope that the traveler will be soothed and intrigued by this aquatic journey - perhaps it will take their minds off the trip theyUre about to take, or the relative they are about to pick up. It's a parallel journey in itself and as it takes several minutes to traverse the experience can be quite meditative if one's frame of mind is so disposed.

Q. What is your favorite creature in the floor?
A. My sentimental favorite is the mother whale and calf (baby). My daughter was three months old when I began competing for this project. Thanks to the support of my musician-husband, I was able to be both artist and parent at this critical personal and career juncture. The depiction of the whales is a stand-in for me and my daughter.

Q. Did the scope of the project change your artistic process?
A. Yes, Working on such a huge scale was an unprecedented challenge.

Q. What's next?
A. Phase II of this project are walkways to Terminals B & C, which will depict creatures of the abyss and ocean bottom.