Sponsored by Tracie Heavner and Jim Frith, Olivia and Pres Garrett, Melody Margrave, Joan and Monty Montgomery, Kim and Jason Spratley, Helen S. and Charles G. Patterson Jr. Charitable Foundation Trust, Sovah Health, and What's Your Sign.
In this series of work, Betsy Hale Bannan examines the microcosm of the airport and uses the act of seeing the earth from above to explore a sense of place. She considers the aesthetics of infrastructure by focusing on the unexpected geometry of hard surfaces, the choreography taking place on them, and the scale of these vast spaces.
Airports are liminal spaces that people experience for mostly fleeting, but sometimes prolonged periods of time. They are both nowhere and everywhere; chaotic yet rigorously controlled. Nobody “goes” to the airport. It is a necessary conduit to somewhere else and not a destination in and of itself. They are designed to shape the way we move from the moment we enter them. Once you are “airside,” you enter a state of suspension, and the rhythm and rituals of coming and going take over. You are physically still, but technically, you are now between places. Normal responsibilities disappear. You become anonymous yet are carefully documented.
Runways are places of both departure and arrival; of waiting, then velocity. They are standardized, yet no two are configured the same. Markings, lighting, and unexpected colors and geometry present abstract pictorial possibilities. Ramp agents and support vehicles perform a choreographed scene fit for the stage, emphasizing the scale shift between humans, aircraft, and commercial space.
These many backstage elements of the airport are often overlooked, but serve to highlight the larger picture of air travel and its complex, multifaceted infrastructure.
Bannan is a professor in the School of Visual Arts at Virginia Tech. She holds a BA in studio art from Virginia Tech and an MFA in painting from Pratt Institute. Her work has been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions around the country.
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