Happy Flying Family

Warwick, Rhode Island

Mom, Dad, Bud, and Sis are all smiles as they walk along with their wheeled luggage. Sculpted in bronze by Chris Kane, the happy flying family was paid for not by the airport where they stand, but by the owner of the airport parking garage.

According to Kane, the parking garage owner had a lot of detail worked into the sculpture, including his wife's college ring (worn by the mom) and a specific issue of the Providence Journal newspaper carried by the dad. Bud is playing with a model airplane to show that he's more excited by the prospect of air travel than by the family's destination.

The happy flying family is meant to send a cheerful message, but one wonders if it only increases angst among modern airline passengers. Would you yell, "Run away you fools!" at the statues? Would you be paranoid that the happy flying family had accidentally walked off with your luggage?