SELECTED WORK

RARA AVIS

2001         28’h x 15’w x 15’d

collaboration with Stuart Schechter
material: cast metal/stainless cable
architect: A. Epstein & Sons, Chicago, IL
project team: Andrea Scofield, Chris Taylor, Sarah Rodrigo
site: Midway Airport, Chicago, IL
commissioned by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs
photographs by Clements/ Howcroft

Rara Avis is an epic suspended sculpture poetically linking natural and manmade aviation.

Comprised of thousands of precisely suspended pewter elements, the artwork employs a three-dimensional Pointillism wherein numerous small sculptures coalesce into a large evanescent composite form.

Travelers approaching the center of Midway Airport’s new passenger terminal will perceive a monumental image of a cardinal. Upon closer examination a perceptual shift occurs as the large avian form reveals itself to be composed of over 1800 small aircraft.

A wide spectrum of these component elements is rendered, ranging from Leonardo-inspired designs to 19th century balloons to classic passenger airliners to 21st century spacecraft.

Over fifty different aircraft are represented, all distinct, and all coming together to render a macrocosmic image of the Illinois state bird.