15 Airports With Awesome Art Collections

Airports around the world are lowkey gold mines for travellers who happen to have extra time on their hands. Many frequently-trafficked layover spots have artwork that's both gifted and specially produced for the airports they occupy. Since airports want to to help ease the often stressful process of flying, they provide travelers with aesthetically enjoyable art and architecture. Check out these 15 Airports With Awesome Art Collections and be sure to look a little closer next time you find yourself in between flights.

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Location: Tokyo

Haneda brings airport art to a new level with its collection. They've had digital public arts, an LED star, and contemporary video productions. Here you can see their human-shaped plastic balloons floating in the air at the concourse as a public art installation put together by Tokyo University professor, Michitaka Hirose.

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Location: Miami

Miami International Airport is currently the largest U.S. gateway for Latin America and the Caribbean. Above is art by Brazilian artist Carybé, meant to reflect Miami's diverse culture.

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Location: Changi, Singapore

Changi is known as the airport (and art) lover's airport. It provide guests with multi-sensory zones that provide a relaxing traveling experience. Pictured above is a fantastic installation titled "Kinetic Rain" by Berlin-based artist Joachim Sauter.

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Location: Toronto

Toronto Pearson takes art seriously. They feature installations, paintings, and even dinosaurs. Their most popular piece is by none other than Sol Lewitt (above).

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Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Rijksmuseum Schipol is a beautiful collaboration between Rijksmuseum Amsterdam and Schiphol Airport made to highlight some of the best historic Dutch artwork for free. They have displayed art from the likes of Rembrandt, d'Hondecoeter, and Van Gogh.

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Location: Bangkok, Thailand

Suvarnabhumi Airport was the most Instagrammed place of 2012, indicating that many find its buildings to be works of art, too. In addition to the elaborate Thai sculpture in the departure area (above), this airport is home to engaging works by artists from all over the world.

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Location: San Francisco

The SFO Museum boasts 20 exhibit spaces with more than 60 works commissioned by the San Francisco Arts Commission. Many of their exhibitions refer to historic showings, such as this one above, which is dedicated to sewing machines of the 20th century.

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Location: Albany, NY

The Albany International Airport Gallery contains a 2,500-square-foot space filled with the kind of works that make you wonder why it couldn't double as a museum. Since 1998, the airport has presented thematic exhibitions, so it might as well be considered more than an insitution of travel. Above is artist Kirsten Hassenfeld's installation, Treen Three.

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Location: Sacramento, CA

Although mid-sized, the Sacramento International Airport in Sacramento, California has a lot of contemporary art. This work, titled Samson, is a conceptual mixed-media piece by Brian Goggin that explores space and travel.

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Location: Edinburgh, Scotland

Edinburgh Airport has an Airport Gallery featuring both local artists and international talent, usually limited to paintings and drawings. They even nabbed Picasso's "Nude Woman in a Red Armchair."

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Location: Atlanta

Hartsfield surprisingly puts a lot of money and effort into their art collection. They have a 950-foot long installation by the artist Amy Landesberg that cost the airport a whopping $1.5 million (above). Now that's commitment.

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Location: Montevideo, Uruguay

The Carrasco Airport favors art that is more interactive than others on this list. Here you can see sculptures of oversized animals by Belgian artist William Sweetlove that welcome travelers and customers.

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Location: Helsinki, Finland

Helsinki Airport's art collection contains abstract and conceptual works that usually resemble contemporary art trends. This piece (above) by Finland-based artist Hans-Christian Berg explores the importance of perception.

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Location: London

The Heathrow Airport in London champions the Terminal 5 Expo Fine Art Gallery that aims to give customers meditative space to chill during stressful travel. The images above show its commemorative exhibit for the 2012 Olympic Games.

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Location: Denver

The Denver International Airport is surprisingly one of the first in the United States to put art in its public areas, and they change their selection frequently. Above is a work by Colorado artist Kim Dickey titled Parterre, which features 20,000 hand-painted ceramic leaves. We promise that DIA's reputation as a potential illuminati headquarters has nothing to do with its affinity for great art.

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