Giant flamingo greets travelers at Florida airport

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The artist drew the flamingo, which is one of Florida’s most iconic birds

The boredom of staying in a large international airport is entertained by art. For some time now, at Tampa International Airport, the “gateway to the West Coast of Florida,” visitors have been greeted by a giant flamingo in the center of the main terminal. His pink neck and long skinny legs descend from the ceiling and touch the ground.

Branded ‘HOME’, Matthew Mazzotta’s colorful 6.7m tall sculpture is accompanied by a ceiling that mimics rippling water. The lighting, which changes with the daylight outside, casts the same dappled glow on the floor and creates the illusion that the flamingo has dipped its head underwater.

The artist drew the flamingo, which is one of Florida’s most iconic birds, as realistically as possible. He sculpted each part by hand to scale and then cast them in a resin and fiberglass component. Next, paint the parts to look realistic, both to the eye and to the touch.

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