Empire Flight

Empire Flight, 2013 by Bernard Williams is a mixed media installation at Laumeier Sculpture Park. It is part of the exhibition, The River Between Us. According to the artist, “the work speaks to a multitude of adventures around the Mississippi River and the great risks undertaken by so many.” In Empire, Williams takes on the sweep of American history. The work symbolizes risk, adventure, technological development and the pursuit of power. With the addition of the corporate logo inspired graphic decals painted on the surface, the sculpture acts as a receptacle for complex visual references to history and culture around the Mississippi River, alluding to important dates, locations and people. Applied to this sculpture, the year 1927 is an important date, referring to Charles Lindbergh’s success in completing the first non-stop transatlantic flight in his plane the Spirit of St. Louis, arriving safely in Paris on May 21, 1927.