Tampa airport’s flamingo sculpture is up for an award, and you can vote for it

Tampa International Airport’s beloved flamingo sculpture is up for an international award in the CODA Awards for the Top 100 public artworks. And you can vote for it to win.

Voting is open to the public and runs through 11:59 p.m. central standard time on July 31 at codaworx.com. You must enter an email address to vote. Winners will be announced at the end of August.

As of now, the 21-foot resin and fiberglass sculpture titled “Home” has the second-most votes in the contest. The “Aquarius Art Tunnel” at Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas, is leading.

CODAworx is an organization that connects artists with public art commissions.

The work by artist Matthew Mazzotta depicts a larger-than-life flamingo dipping its head under “water” created by projections of ripples on the floor under a ceiling of metal panels and lights. It was commissioned by the airport for $520,000.

The sculpture’s installation was completed last year, and it is popular with travelers, prompting thousands of selfies.

In November, the airport launched a contest to name the bird itself, which resulted in more than 65,000 entries and 37,000 votes from around the world. Three names emerged as finalists for the public to vote on: Cora, Finn and Phoebe.

Phoebe was the winner. The name had been submitted by J. Bryan M, a retired educator who picked the name as a play on the bird’s scientific name, phoenicopterus.

Kelly Figley, who leads the airport’s public art program, said when the art committee commissioned the sculpture they had a feeling it would become iconic, but the response has been unexpected. It even prompted a group of flamingo enthusiasts to hold its national convention in Tampa, Figley said.

Mazzotta, who has public art projects around the country, said the flamingo’s popularity is unusual, because people have strong opinions about public art. He said the response to “Home” has been a “grand slam.”