Letter of the day: Standing up for our own

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 12/01/2012 (5294 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

I was pleased to see the Jan. 5 article U of M seeks city funds to display old airport artwork about Eli Bornstein’s piece in the old airport terminal building titled Structurist Relief, and your follow-up editorial of Jan. 6, Fitting landing for airport art).

As a longtime member, now retired, of the University of Manitoba, I was also pleased to see that your editorial supports the university’s request to the city to enable that artwork to be displayed in Max Bell Centre.

However, I was disappointed to read that the U of M was taking steps to acquire the piece by Bornstein, a University of Saskatchewan art faculty member, rather than, or in addition to, the other art piece in the old airport terminal, Northern Lights — mentioned briefly in your Jan. 6 editorial — by John Graham, who was a longtime professor of architecture at the U of M.

I and others feel Graham’s reticulated sculpture is a more subtle and beautiful work than the blocky one by Bornstein. Two or three years ago it appeared that both of these pieces might have become the victim of the building’s demolition, but those of us who enjoyed them in the old terminal can now be grateful to the organizations and individuals who have arranged to preserve them for public viewing at the U of M (Bornstein’s) and the Canadian Aviation and Space Museum (Graham’s).

By this letter, I hope to give the late Graham some recognition for the beautiful artistic contribution he made to the old airport terminal building.

ROBERT (Bob) Ferguson

Winnipeg