PADUCAH, Ky. — On June 6, from 2-4 p.m., Guy Kemper will install the first of three pieces of art done by local artists at the new Barkley Regional Airport terminal in West Paducah, Kentucky.
“Flight Pattern Quilt” measures 6 feet high and 29 feet long and is spread across in five six feet by five feet panels. Evocative of the quilted fabric Paducah is known for, the piece will give a burst of energy to the public side of the new terminal. Richly detailed, the installation has over 60,000 pieces of glass smalti, each carefully selected and set by hand by Mayer of Munich, which translated Kemper’s piece into a mosaic.
Celebrated for their strength and emotional expressiveness, Kemper’s projects have won widespread acclaim, including three prestigious CODA International Design Awards. The work of the Louisville native and Woodford County resident has been exhibited and commissioned in Asia, Europe, North America and the Middle East. Kemper also has installation at other airports including O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, the Baltimore-Washington International Airport, Orlando International Airport, Nashville International Airport, and the St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport.
Kemper’s piece is the first of three to be installed in the new terminal with all three being selected through a search conducted by an ad-hoc committee of the Airport Board and Via Partnership, a public art consulting firm, that consisted of artists that have lived or currently live in a 50-mile radius of the airport.
The other two pieces were made by a pair of local Paducah artists, Nikki May and Russel Bash. May’s “Angles Garden” will cover the glass surrounding the gate area, while Bash’s “Kaleidoscopes of Paducah” will be featured inside the gate area.
Information on the installation of “Angles Garden” and “Kaleidoscopes of Paducah” will be made available later.