The three airports in the Phoenix Airport System – Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, Phoenix Goodyear Airport, and Phoenix Deer Valley Airport – are not only transportation centers but culture hubs. Each airport showcases revolving art exhibitions and longstanding installations as extensions of the Phoenix Airport Museum.
The Phoenix Airport Museum is unique in that it has a permanent collection of more than 1,000 pieces of artwork encompassing all media, mixed-media murals like “The Phoenix,” metal and ceramic sculptures, photographic and digital prints, and acrylic and oil paintings. 
Ongoing exhibitions are held both before and after security, so an airline ticket isn’t necessary to enjoy the program’s many offerings. Some artwork might even be right under your feet as you ride the PHX Sky Train® into either terminal and the Rental Car Center. The PHX Sky Train® platforms at 44th Street, 24th Street, East Economy Parking also have ornate terrazzo floors custom designed by area artists, with most floors incorporating native stones or materials to reflect the Arizona environment.
The walls in the Terminal 4 pedestrian bridges, the ceiling in the 44th PHX Sky Train® Station and an exterior corner of Terminal 3 are sites of art displays that prove art doesn’t have to sit on a display case in a gallery to be viewed and enjoyed.
Of course, art galleries are still popular ways to view installations. Terminal 4 has a dedicated space for gallery exhibitions plus niche areas for portable displays on each level. (Most exhibitions are before security but the Terminal 4 level 1 display is after security and is accessible only to international passengers.) Terminal 3 similarly has easily accessible art spaces before security and a museum gallery after security.
Phoenix Goodyear and Phoenix Deer Valley airports host exhibitions in their lobbies and other interior spaces. Deer Valley also has art displayed outside. The Rental Car Center has displays in its lobby, hallways, atriums, and outside and a collection of 80 works of art all its own.
In fact, one of the most important pieces of local public art is located inside the Rental Car Center. “The Phoenix,” a 75-foot-wide triptych by Paul Coze, is considered to be the first piece of public art selected by the City of Phoenix using a general process where public members voted on it. The three-panel mural was displayed in Terminal 2 since its opening in 1962 until the terminal was decommissioned and closed in early 2020. The mural was saved and relocated in 2021 before Terminal 2 was demolished; its installation in the Rental Car Center has spurred renewed interest and appreciation for the unique, multimedia mural.
New exhibitions may last for months but it’s wise to frequently check and see what’s new. One of the newest exhibitions is “Midcentury Marvels,” a photography display in the Terminal 4 Food Court. Part presentation of the uncommon subgenre of architectural photography, and part historic record of the postwar boom in Phoenix, “Midcentury Marvels” showcases a time in Phoenix history when it was not yet the large city it became.
New exhibitions are presented in the airport galleries with existing artwork or sometimes with loaned pieces from artists, collectors and other galleries. The Phoenix Airport Museum obtains art by purchasing or commissioning pieces enabled by a Phoenix ordinance that authorizes up to 1% capital improvement projects funds be spent on art pieces. This process is managed by the Phoenix Office of Cultural Affairs in collaboration with Phoenix Airport Museum staff.
Want to learn more about the Phoenix Airport Museum and its exhibitions? Go to skyharbor.com/at-the-airport/amenities /airport-museum/.
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