Wednesday, October 24, 2007
HYANNIS — Betty Davis admires the beauty of cement airport barriers.
These aren't the typical airport security barriers. These, at Barnstable Municipal Airport, are painted with scenes of nature on Cape Cod.
Davis, who lives in Mashpee, admired a partially painted Brewster beach scene yesterday and a collection of symbols from the region that included sailboats and whales.
"If you're waiting (at the airport), you might as well look at something nice," said Davis, who flies out of the airport about once a month.
Four area artists are painting scenes of Cape Cod on the cement barriers this week, including images of an early-1900s Hyannis Harbor and a view of Sandy Neck Beach dunes.
The airport added the barriers this summer in front of the passenger terminal. At first, they decorated them with flower pots, but airport manager Quincy "Doc" Mosby decided to go another step and have murals painted on on the 33-inch-high by 10-foot-long barriers.
"We just wanted to make them nice," he said.
The airport, with the help of consultant Betsey Sanpere, started a contest to "Celebrate Cape Cod."
About a dozen artists submitted work, Sanpere said.
Clare O'Connor of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce, Lisa Hergenrother, executive director of the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod, and John Griffin, vice chairman of the Barnstable Municipal Airport Commission, picked the winners.
They include Hyannis resident Charles Munro, Centerville resident Carolyn Weston Patkowski, Hyannis resident Gayle McKennon and Brewster resident Karen North Wells.
"Being that this is the first project, it was important we chose high quality artists," Hergenrother said.
Creating his scene yesterday, Munro said it was his first time painting on cement. The sculptor and painter usually works with wood.
"I wanted to see if I could do it," Munro said, painting a scene that includes a map of Cape Cod dotted with lighthouses.
Sanpere said if the airport expands, more will be done, including other art exhibits. Artwork done by Barnstable High School students was added inside the airport last week.
"We want to have a permanent rotating display," Mosby said about the high school artwork.
Adding displays throughout the airport can only help area artists reach new audiences, Hergenrother said.
"It (mural paintings) was something that is a great start," she said.
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