Houston bets on art to win flyers in ‘layover’ economy

At most airports, passengers hurry past walls of beige and glass, eyes locked on overhead departure screens. In Houston, the experience feels different. George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) and William P. Hobby Airport (HOU) have been reimagined into cultural spaces where global travelers stumble across art like they might stumble into a museum.

Houston’s airports are the new museum.

What began with a city ordinance that sets aside a sliver of the airport system’s budget for public art has turned into one of the most ambitious collections in aviation. In 2019, Houston Airports counted roughly 250 works in its collection. Today, the tally tops 400. That kind of growth puts the Houston Airports Civic Art Collection in league with civic institutions. Skytrax has taken notice, naming it the World’s Best Airport Art Program three years in a row—beating out the likes of Singapore Changi and Doha Hamad.

In Houston, art is a strategy.

“Our world-renowned art program is one of our most powerful tools to stand apart from every other airport in the world,” said Alton DuLaney, chief curator of cultural affairs for the City of Houston. “It transforms our facilities from places you pass through into experiences you remember.”

Instead of bland beige corridors and stressful checkpoints, travelers move through bursts of color and sound. Dale Chihuly’s Coastal Fiori glimmers above the TSA lanes in Terminal E.

David Adickes’ We Love Houston, Too, greets passengers at Hobby.

Murals by Vargas-Suarez Universal and Graciela Hasper splash across walls in IAH’s new Terminal E, filling dead space with motion and light.

And then there’s the music.

One day a string quartet, the next a Latin guitarist or a country swing band. Harmony in the Air makes the concourse feel less like a waiting room and more like a stage.

The program also brings working artists into the terminal. The Artist-in-Residence program has creatives sketching, carving and writing in the terminal, where passengers can watch. Curious travelers may walk away with a memory of a flight and the moment they saw a sculpture take shape.

The results are visible and measurable.

Travelers are now showing up early, not for faster lines, but to linger. In just seven months of 2025, Harmony in the Air drew more than 130 unsolicited compliments. With more than 60 million passengers expected this year, the exposure rivals the Louvre or MoMA. The difference? At IAH and HOU, the audience isn’t looking for culture. Culture finds them.

A cultural collaboration with the Orange Show and its popular annual Art Car Parade has brought ‘art cars’ into the Ticketing Lobby at IAH Terminal A and HOU. Passengers are opening their phones and snapping selfies well before they open their airline app to scan their boarding pass.

“Airports are the new art museums, and Houston is leading that movement on a global scale,” said DuLaney. “For many travelers, this may be their first encounter with immersive installations or suspended sculptures. We get to introduce them to the power of art in a place they never expected it.”

That power is leverage.

As Houston gears up to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup, every commission doubles as branding. Every performance sends the same message: Houston is not just a stopover city. It’s Space City. Art City.

At IAH and HOU, a layover isn’t wasted time. It’s an invitation to sample the energy of one of America’s most diverse cities without ever leaving the terminal. And in a global aviation market where passengers can choose where to spend their hours, Houston has sharpened its edge. Art is the weapon. Loyalty is the prize.

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