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Sac Airport Artwork Installation Faces Unexpected Challenges

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) – The artistic centerpiece for the newly redesigned terminal at the Sacramento International Airport is finally being installed despite new obstacles and alterations to the design.

The giant, 12,000-pound, 56-foot-loong red rabbit will soon be erected in the baggage claim area of Terminal B, which is scheduled to open next month. The concept has been revised since the artist's first proposal, incorporating new approaches to account for safety and installation concerns.

"He had to switch from fiberglass to aluminum, which required a redesign to the piece," said Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission spokesperson Shelly Willis, the Art in Public Places Director.

Since the giant art piece will be suspended in an atrium with no sprinklers, the redesign makes the statue less flammable. Instead of being constructed as one big piece, more than 1,600 triangles make up the black base for structural integrity.

The alterations even include how the red skin will attach to the black base; the change accomplished through "sort of a Velcro to an epoxy," Willis added.

The artwork took two craftsmen 6 months working full time in Germany, followed by the puzzle-like assembly process.

"It's taken a team three months to assemble in the terminal," Willis said.

The second piece to the sculpture, a granite suitcase with a vortex, will direct people to the luggage area.

"I believe it will become an iconic image for Sacramento," Willis said. "It's going to be a rabbit jumping into a suitcase."

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