Written on August 30, 2023
Salt Lake City, UT (August 29, 2023) – In homage to the 2002 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, the Salt Lake City Mayor’s Office in cooperation with the Department of Airports and Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games unveiled today the resurrected Hoberman Arch at the exit to the airport and entry-way to the city. The massive arch, which formed the backdrop of the 2002 Medals Plaza stage, underwent a meticulous restoration by a team directed by artist Gordon Huether and now sits on a prominent base structure, offering locals and visitors alike a reminder of Salt Lake City’s role as a host Olympic and Paralympic city.
According to officials at the unveiling, the Hoberman Arch is one of the lasting legacies from the 2002 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The arch’s permanent location at the airport welcomes travelers to Salt Lake City and is “a fitting reminder that, during an unprecedented time, we successfully welcomed the world to Utah,” according to the City’s press statements.
The Hoberman Arch is a 72-foot-wide by 36-foot-high mechanical curtain installed for the Medals Plaza in downtown Salt Lake City for the Winter Games. The arch was designed by artist, architect and engineer Chuck Hoberman and was inspired by Utah’s natural stone arches. The semi-circular aluminum structure resembles the form and movement of a human iris and weighs approx. 31,000 pounds. It is made up of 4,000 individual pieces put together as 96 connected panels with 13,000 steel rivets. The panels vary in size with the largest being 5-feet-wide by 9-feet-high.
At the time of its construction, the arch was the largest unfolding structure in the world.
The Hoberman Arch opened and closed to mark the beginning and the end of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games as well as the awarding of Olympic medals every evening and the Paralympic Closing Ceremony.
“The Hoberman Arch is an iconic element that showcases the athletic success of the 2002 medalists and our accomplishment as a community in hosting the Games,” said Fraser Bullock, President and CEO of the Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games. “It is also a star that guides us in bringing a future Games back to Utah in 2030 or 2034.”
The Hoberman Arch has been carefully restored by a team directed by artist Gordon Huether including Meta Design & Manufacturing of Vallejo, CA, which fabricated replacement parts and fabricated and installed the base, and the Salt Lake City offices of Yesco which fabricated and installed the lighting signage on the base of the sculpture, a key feature in illuminating the arch.
The arch sits on a base structure that also includes remembrance-displays of the logos from the 2002 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.
Said Huether of the months-long effort, “Our studio is proud to have had the opportunity to repair and restore this important Salt Lake City icon that will greet millions of visitors and locals to Utah for generations to come.” Huether has envisioned and installed large-scale art installations for Salt Lake City International Airport’s major new facilities, including artworks “The Canyon”, “The Falls” and — coming soon — “The Canyon 2.0”, “The River Tunnel” and “Northern Light”, among others.
About Gordon Huether Studio
Gordon Huether is a Napa, CA-based artist specializing in large-scale, site-specific permanent art installations. With hundreds of works across a decades-long career, Huether’s most complex commission to date is the seven architecturally integrated installations for the Salt Lake City International Airport, completing in stages from 2020 to 2024. For more information, visit us at www.gordonhuether.com.
Photos: Francisco Kjolseth | Salt Lake City Tribune | Aug 24, 2023 | Installation of reburbished Holberman Arch at Salt Lake City Airport
