Looking for a way to pass the time at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport? Head over to Terminal D, where a cool arts-meets-health activity helps your layover evaporate. It’s called the LiveWell Walking Path, and it involves counting your steps between one art piece and another. For instance, one large circular tile mosaic shows trees arranged in a disc shape with birds around its outskirts. It’s a striking and calming piece titled Cypress Trees by Arthello Beck. To walk between this piece and one called Louise by Linda and Ed Blackburn, which shows a film noir couple about to embrace against a backdrop of chaos, it is supposed to take you 100 steps. For this particular stop, you also get to see the large, tilting silver cityscape by Dennis Oppenheim called Crystal Mountain, which is fun to walk through.
If it takes you more or fewer steps, it’s at least entertaining to count (we were 107). The step counts are identified in posters attached to pillars in the terminal, which point you to the next art piece. The LiveWell Walking Path was rolled out in 2012 as a collaboration with the American Heart Association, and the entire path is 7/10ths of a mile: just enough to get you moving before you have to sit again on your next flight.
In all, there are 12 art medallions embedded in the floor between Gates D6 and D40. There are also two literal step challenges, with two 55-foot staircases that lead to the Skylink trains between the terminals—and even a yoga area at Gate D40, temporarily closed. DFW has a great selection of art throughout the terminals, including spectacular terrazzo floors at the Skylink platforms. Similar walking incentives exist at Boston’s Logan Airport, Phoenix’s Sky Harbor, and Indianapolis Regional Airport.