2005-2018

In collaboration with the people of Montello
comissioned by Art in General’s New Commissions program

Like all eteam projects, International Airport Montello has primarily to do with testing boundaries. It includes, but is far from limited to, eteam’s production of events and memories in collaboration with the 67 citizens of Montello, Nevada, a place off the beaten track whose inhabitants proudly refer to as “the town that refuses die.” Prior to visiting Montello in 2004, eteam purchased a 10-acre plot of nearby land on eBay for $1,900. Upon visiting their geographic holdings (which they bought based on affordability rather than any particular interest in Montello), eteam discovered that the town has an abandoned airstrip some 6,000 feet in length. — Sofia Hernandez Chong Cuy – New Commissions Program Director

There is a correlation between mapping and plotting, between a map and a plot (of land). The abstraction inherent in distance fosters fictional narratives that start with an overview and a focus point. In 2005 we noticed two landing strips near the rural town of Montello in Nevada on a Satellite image. The discovery triggered the appearance of the International Airport Montello (IAM), first as a hypothesis, then as temporary reifications in form of improvised airport-related community actions. A local resident placed a freestanding door in the desert and when asked “Why?” responded: ”Have you ever seen an airport without a door?” As these things kept happening the airport grew.