TWA Flight Center

It was the age of dreams. The age with no limits. The era of challenges, creativity and imagination. When everything was possible if you set your mind to it…
And the era when Eero Saarinen draw the inspiring lines of his timeless masterpieces. Gateway Arch, Ingalls Rink and — TWA terminal.
It was 1961.
I was not even born yet when Saarinen passed away, just year before TWA was completed. His sketches were brought to life after his death, and now they are iconic landmarks we all know and admire.
To fully understand and appreciate the grandiosity of this, take a look at his pencil drawings (in the age of google and year 2013, they are easy to find). Singing lines, pure music in architectural form. He did not just design functional structures — he created. He dreamed. He imagined.
I been to TWA terminal couple times before it closed it doors in 2001, but every time I fly out of JFK this days, I still look out for it — a small bird ready to take off into open sky…
Hopefully, one day, it will reopen for all of us to visit once again — as a hotel and conference center from what I heard, but really, as a symbol of creativity and spirit that are grand and limitless.
«I think of architecture as a total of everything we have around us…» he said.
Very much true.
Dare we to dream big.

The old TWA Terminal was open to the public for Open House New York today. It is an amazing structure by the architect Eero Saarinen, which is landmarked and being restored. There are two long walkways that take you into the terminal and evokes a Jetsons image. Inside the terminal are walkways that traverse the interior so that you can look down at the main concourse. The terminal was filled with light (and mobs of people) and felt airy. One can imagine the age of air travel when people were dressed for travel and flying was still an adventure.
Hopefully, they will again make the terminal available for public appreciation soon.