Artwork in JFK’s New Terminal One to celebrate New York

Seven internationally recognised artists have been selected to “create monumental, site-specific artworks that will anchor the expansive cultural programme” of the New Terminal One at New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport.

The artwork will celebrate the history, culture and diversity of New York and the airport’s home borough of Queens.

Indeed, sculpture, mosaics and murals throughout the terminal will be integrated into a cultural programme that will also include filmmaking, immersive digital experiences and the terminal’s branding to create a sense of place that is unique to New York.

The New Terminal One is a key component of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s $19 billion transformation of JFK into a world-class gateway, and will open in phases beginning in 2026 with the terminal headhouse and the first 14 gates.

When complete in 2030, the New Terminal One will be the largest terminal at JFK, with a footprint of 2.6 million square feet, boast 23 gates and have the capacity to serve up to 23 million passengers annually.

Led by Arup in collaboration with Pentagram, Culture Corps, Gentilhomme, Karlssonwilker, We Should Do It All, and a cohort of renowned artists and studios, the integrated cultural programme, arguably establishes the New Terminal One as a global destination that reflects the creativity, diversity, and cultural prominence of New York, contributing to a best-in-class passenger experience.

“Public art that is inspiring and evocative of our region is an essential part of the Port Authority’s strategy to create world-class airports that are becoming destinations in their own right,” said PANYNJ’s executive director Rick Cotton.

“Riveting public art will anchor an expansive cultural program that will also include immersive digital experiences, engaging filmmaking and distinctive branding that will create a uniquely New York sense of place.”

Jennifer Aument, chief executive officer at the New Terminal One at JFK, noted: “We are thrilled to unveil our art, branding and digital experience programme in partnership with the Port Authority and Arup, further elevating our transformational guest experience for partner airlines and their customers at the New Terminal One.

“From the moment travellers arrive at our doors to the moment they depart, they will be immersed in stunning works of art and unique installations that reflect the distinct energy and culture of New York, a city like no other.”

Airports use public art, bold branding and digital installations –  which are typically treated as separate programmes – to enhance the guest experience.

The New Terminal One had a vision of doing something different: developing all of these elements as part of one integrated programme to create an all-encompassing cultural experience.

And to realise this vision, Arup orchestrated a multi-disciplinary team of leading creative professionals who collaborated to bring together these typically disparate elements into a seamless experience.

The goal of the programme was to create a guest experience that could only happen in New York and has a strong, authentic New York sense of place.

“Too often airport experiences feel like they could be anywhere,” said Gideon D’Arcangelo, experience design lead at Arup.

“Building on the Port Authority’s philosophy of creating airports with a true sense of place, we set out to create an experience that could not happen anywhere else, that could only happen in New York.”

The public art programme at the New Terminal One, developed by lead curator Culture Corps, will feature monumental, site-specific commissions all with a New York sense of place from internationally celebrated artists, including three who live and work in New York City.

They include Yinka Shonibare, Tomás Saraceno, Firelei Báez and Kelly Akashi whose 18-foot sculpture Migration of Flora will depict native flowers rising from a bronze hand, symbolising New York’s international influence and the strength and togetherness that it embodies.

The New Terminal One will include series of short films displayed in each hold room —conceived as “Love Letters to New York” — offering travellers a final, heartfelt glimpse of New York.

While the defining feature of the New Terminal One’s departures hall is an immersive media experience, ‘Leaving New York’, designed in collaboration by Arup and Pentagram.

Dynamic displays flanking the walls alongside and overhead the security queue weave together a compelling narrative about the ways people have departed from New York over the ages — by land, by rail, by air, and by sea.

A soundscape of New York sounds welcomes travellers back to land after their international flights along the corridor leading to the US Customs and Border Protection hall.

The soundscape is complemented by flowing visual scenes of New York’s natural environment from upstate New York down to Jamaica Bay, creating a calming atmosphere.

As travellers exit the terminal, another large-scale digital display, designed by Arup, will envelop travellers, providing one last visual reminder of New York’s unique atmosphere. The display’s 90-degree wrap will create an anamorphic optical illusion, giving subjects a 3D appearance.