Clinton National Airport, Little Rock, AR

When Paul Berra, Kevin Rickman, and their team at Missouri Terrazzo first learned about the proposed project at the Clinton National Airport, they were excited to bring the artist’s vision to life. The project stemmed from a nationwide contest put on by the airport’s new “Art in the Airport” program.

Arkansas artist Tiffany Black won the contest, earning the honor of having her artwork installed in the airport’s busy pre-security lobby – an area described by Paul and Kevin as the “heart of the airport.”

Black’s concept for the project was designed to celebrate Arkansas and its natural state. For example, the floor depicts 12 types of plants, one type of bird, 16 types of insects, and a vast landscape scene depicting the state’s different regions.

It’s an eye-catching work of art demanding an attention to detail that the Missouri Terrazzo team executed exquisitely with terrazzo. Because of the design’s complexity, the crew worked with about 50 color epoxies and 100s of different color marble chips to bring the artist’s colorful vision to life.

The working space required dexterity, too. The Clinton National Airport project covers about 4,600 square feet. The crew worked while the airport was open: during the busy Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays at that.
Accommodating the hustle and bustle of the airport meant working in an 8-foot wide by 50-foot long, self-contained enclosure, meaning the crew had to complete sections of the installation in chunks. Additionally, the team had to stage their materials outside and couldn’t pre-mix materials in advance.

The sheer size of the project and the level of detail and craftsmanship that went into making the artist’s image alive in beautiful terrazzo were a joy to accomplish. “It’s probably one of the largest public art installation projects we’ve ever done – the most complex, most challenging, one of the most beautiful projects we’ve ever done,” Kevin said.

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