Since the new passenger terminal opened in 1992, Peter Calaboyias' "Silver Grid Wall" aluminum work has greeted travelers who ride escalators in the airside building of Pittsburgh International Airport to the tram.

But like the many US Airways flights that have been dropped at the airport in recent years, Mr. Calaboyias fears his sculpture soon may be gone as well.

The local artist said he has been told the Allegheny County Airport Authority is thinking about removing the sculpture and using the prominent space above the escalators for advertising.

He is fighting to keep the piece in its spot, appealing to local politicians and the authority's board to block its removal.

"The question I pose to the members of this board: Are they being influenced by corporate officials, other artists and institutions to remove my sculpture and use the space for commercial advertising?" he asked at an authority board meeting earlier this month.

Authority Executive Director Bradley D. Penrod acknowledged that the airport was considering all options for the space.

Asked if removing the sculpture was a possibility, he replied, "That's one option that we have, yes." But he added no decisions have been made to date. He said discussions have been "exploratory" in nature.

Peter Calaboyias

The authority is looking for ways to generate cash to offset cutbacks being made next month by US Airways, airport authority spokeswoman JoAnn Jenny said. The airline is slashing another 40 flights at the airport and dropping 18 gates, which could cost the airport as much as $5.5 million a year in revenue.

"We need to look for other means of revenue, non-aviation revenue. We want to increase that ... We have to continue looking for ways to reduce the costs for the airlines," she said.

As part of an agreement reached in conjunction with the midfield construction, all artwork selected to be installed in the terminal could not be removed for at least five years, a time period that has long since passed.

Mr. Calaboyias' "Silver Grid Wall," 78 feet long and 8 feet high and consisting of 16 panels, ended up in the terminal amid controversy.

According to 1993 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article, some of the members of the art committee created to select pieces for display at the terminal objected to the sculpture. But passenger terminal architect Tasso Katselas liked it and backed its installation. He said at the time he polled committee members and had a majority of votes to install it.

In the years since, Mr. Calaboyias said numerous travelers have come to appreciate the work.

"It has been commented on countless times by so many citizens of Western Pennsylvania that when they arrive and pass under the sculpture, they are home," he told the board. "The work is an icon of the airport and is recognized worldwide."

He has won an ally in his fight in state Sen. Jim Ferlo, who e-mailed county Chief Executive Dan Onorato earlier this month in support of the sculpture.

"This sculpture is world renowned, unique, has sense of place, was designed specifically for its location and highlights the work and talent of a great Pittsburgh artist and accents Pittsburgh made materials," he wrote.

"Does everything have to be destroyed?"

Mr. Calaboyias said the terminal could end up with a far different look if the sculpture is removed.

"The airside terminal is the gateway for arriving visitors to the city," he said. "As they start down the escalators they are now greeted by two mannequins, a revolutionary soldier and a football player. Proceeding down they get a good dose of ketchup bottles on either side, and if the sculpture is removed, they will be inundated with UPMC billboards. This will be their first impression of Pittsburgh."

He contends the airport authority was close to cutting a deal with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center to lease the space for $10,000 a month before he protested and a decision was put on hold.

Ms. Jenny said UPMC had expressed an interest in the space but stressed that no agreement was reached. She added there has been "a lot of interest" in the wall because of its visibility as travelers descend escalators in the airside building for the tram to go to the landside building and baggage claim.

"There's some nice time to see [any advertising]. It's a real captive audience for that 15 seconds," she said. "They're all on the escalator or whatever. There's a lot of promotional interest in that space."

She estimated the space would generate far more than $10,000 a month if used for advertising.

Ms. Jenny said a decision on what to do with the sculpture and the space has been put on hold while an art committee made up of two authority board members and some employees weighs the "public art question vs. the advertising revenue question."

The committee is expected to convene in January or February. It eventually will make a recommendation to the full board. Ms. Jenny said the sculpture has both its supporters and its critics.

"There are people who absolutely love it and there are those people who dislike it," she said. "It's not a work of art that people have a neutral reaction to."