Art speaks an international language – ideal for a place where an international audience comes together.
That’s why more and more airports are using the intuitive, communicative character of works of art to create an appealing ambience and convey emotionally stimulating content. Abu Dhabi, which is causing a worldwide sensation with art and cultural projects such as the Abu Dhabi Louvre Museum, is setting the tone together with Art Leasing & Invest AG in the still young ART@AIRPORTS area.
The new terminal of Abu Dhabi International Airport, which is currently under construction, is to become more than just an anonymous transfer zone. With a visionary art concept, the airport operator wants to do justice to the spectacular setting of the building on the one hand, and on the other hand create lively islands that inspire pause and amazement. Art Leasing & Invest AG won the international tender for the development, planning and implementation of a high-quality art concept in 2018.
The dimensions of the project are as extraordinary as the contemporary works of art will be. The documentation and contractual agreements alone comprise more than 10’000 pages, 500 artists have been evaluated, 80 have been selected for a closer analysis and more than 5’000 working hours have been invested so far. Now the airport operator has a detailed documentation of 25 works of art that correspond to the vision and budget of the project. The next step requires a logistical masterpiece from Art Leasing & Invest AG and its subsidiary Sustainable Art Projects LLC in Abu Dhabi: the large-format installations, sculptures and paintings – some of which have been dismantled into their smallest individual parts – must be transported from all over the world to their destination and installed on schedule.