 When architect Eero Saarinen designed the TWA Terminal at JFK International Airport, he created an uncompromising structure, uniquely responsive to the human experience of travel. Saarinen s landmark terminal suggested that any place, even one occupied for a brief moment, even one not intended as a final destination, could be forever imbedded in our memory. Built at a time when commercial travel was transitioning from propeller to jet aircraft, the iconic terminal was destined for a future that would never arrive. Since 2001, the site has remained in a state of suspension, and it is this phenomenon that serves as the platform for an international exhibition of contemporary art, Terminal 5. While the terminal stands as a vacant masterpiece of air travel, the Terminal 5 exhibition is intended to further the public encounter with the airport, contributing to an enriched understanding of travel, architecture and contemporary art. As a project for the early 21st century it offers a new model for responding to existing resources in public space by providing an experience that privileges a unique moment in time.