SEATTLE — The Museum of Flight’s major new exhibit for 2025 opens June 21 with the world premiere of The MiG-21 Project.
South African artist Ralph Ziman took five years to transform a decommissioned Cold War era, Soviet-designed MiG-21 fighter jet into a stunning work of art, entirely covered in tens of millions of colorful glass beads, according to museum officials.
The re-imagined jet turns an icon of violence into a symbol of resilience and collaboration, and is the centerpiece of the exhibit, which will be on view until Jan. 26, 2026.
“The aim of The MiG-21 Project is to take the most mass-produced supersonic fighter aircraft and to turn it from a machine of war into something that looks beautiful and changes the meaning of it,” said Ziman.
The MiG-21 Project is the culmination of Ziman’s Weapons of Mass Production Trilogy, a 12-year project inspired by the artist’s experiences growing up in Apartheid South Africa and realized by teams on two continents — Ziman and his team in Los Angeles in collaboration with Southern African beadwork artisans. Together they addressed the impact of the arms trade on global conflicts and the continued militarization of police forces around the world, and responded by turning symbols of oppression into works of art that inspire a reflection on history and current conflicts.
The first part of the trilogy was The AK-47 Project, while the second, The Casspir Project, transformed an 11-ton Apartheid-era Casspir armored police vehicle.
The Museum of Flight exhibit marks the first public display of the reclaimed MiG-21, and three rooms of the museum’s Special Exhibits Gallery have been transformed with original artwork, Afrofuturistic flight suits designed and crafted by the artist and his team, large scale photographs, videos, and interactives. New materials from The Museum of Flight detail the history of MiG-21 aircraft, the Cold War, and how other military aircraft have been repurposed for civilian duties.
The Museum of Flight will also offer special programming and family events in conjunction with the exhibit. The exhibit is free for museum members and included with admission.
For more information: MuseumOfFlight.org
