Commission picks finalists for art in Clinton National

Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport/Adams Field will pay two artists $10,000 each for works they have developed to showcase Arkansas and place the work on permanent display at the state’s largest airport.

The artwork — one a terrazzo floor piece and the other a wall-mounted work — will go in the pre-security lobby of the terminal’s second floor.

The effort is part of the Art in Airport program, conceived by Meredith Catlett, a past member of the Little Rock Municipal Airport Commission, to install public art throughout the airport.

An informal committee that Catlett chaired recommended the artists, which the commission approved Tuesday.

Neither artist calls Arkansas home, but both have connections to the state. Under the competition rules, artists had to reside in Arkansas or have lived, worked or studied in the state.

Tiffany Black, who now lives in New York City, was selected based on her conceptual design for the terrazzo floor project. She previously was an artist-in-residence and visiting professor at Arkansas Tech University in Russellville.

June Sekiguchi, selected for the wall project, was born in Fayetteville, where her father taught mathematics at the University of Arkansas. She now resides outside Seattle.

Their work was selected from more than 150 entries that responded to separate advertisement for proposals, airport staff members said. Additionally, Catlett’s committee reached out to local, state and regional art organizations, colleges and universities and galleries and artists.

Other committee members include Kyle Boswell, Brad Cushman, Garbo Hearne, Kaki Hockersmith, Marjorie Williams-Smith and Mark Camp, a commission member who was recently added.

Black and Sekiguchi were among six semifinalists the committee selected unanimously, Catlett said. Each semifinalist received $1,200.

Black and Sekiguchi also were unanimously picked as finalists, Catlett said.

The committee worked under the guidance of Via Partnership, a subcontractor of Alliance, the airport’s terminal architect. Via works with communities and airports throughout the United States to implement public art projects.

The selected works reflect the committee’s goals, which was to celebrate the region’s natural environment, welcome people to Little Rock and Arkansas, create a positive first impression for the airport and region and “infuse creativity and artistry into highly visible locations at the airport,” according to airport staff.