The Pilot Picasso: Turning Flight Tracks Into Works of Art

Arkansas aviator uses ForeFlight, precision flying, and a Cessna 182 RG to paint the sky.

Meg Godlewski

Thursday, October 22, 2026 at 11:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

Benjamin Glasgow McDaniel III, the self-named ‘Pilot Picasso,’ builds hours and creates artwork in the sky. Above is his breast cancer awareness ribbon. [Credit: Benjamin Glasgow McDaniel III]

Key Takeaways:

Benjamin Glasgow McDaniel III, known as "Pilot Picasso," creates unique "sky art" by meticulously flying pre-planned patterns with his Cessna, using flight-tracking technology to record his aircraft's path as intricate designs.
His aerial artworks range from recreations of famous masterpieces like the Mona Lisa to original messages that convey positive themes, such as "You Are Loved" for suicide awareness.
Distinct from traditional skywriting, McDaniel's process involves extensive ground planning and precise, continuous hand-flown execution of the flight path, with no room for error in shaping the final artwork.

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Remember the first time you did laps in the pattern and couldn’t wait to see the track on the screen of your tablet at the end of the flight? If you flew well, you had a multilayered racetrack pattern of green.

Benjamin Glasgow McDaniel III, from Bentonville, Arkansas, has taken flight tracks to a higher level, using his G1000-equipped Cessna as a paintbrush to create specific designs as he flies.