By Kristin Mayer
Special to the Daily Press

SANTA MONICA AIRPORT Friends and family joined representatives from the Santa Monica Airport and Santa Monica College Wednesday morning to commemorate the life and artistry of aviation muralist Andy Blinn, who died last December at the age of 40 after a life-long bout with cystic fibrosis.

The plaque dedication ceremony spotlighted a mural Blinn painted as a teenager in a stairwell leading to the basement of what was The Donald Douglas Museum and Library of Santa Monica in 1991.

The former museum is now the main building on Santa Monica College’s Airport Campus. The aviation-themed artwork, along with other reminders of the building’s aviation history, were preserved when the college took over the site from the museum in 1988, according to Bruce Smith, the college’s public information officer.

“It’s a great, great way to commemorate” the Douglas aircraft, said Rod Merl, planning and administration manager at the airport, about the mural.