My first spotting of the recently restarted Poetry in Motion series. And I thoroughly enjoyed it.

artsfortransit:

Avenue U Station // Q subway train
Jason Middlebrook: Brooklyn Seeds, 2011
Glass mosaic

Jason Middlebrook’s mosaic installation, Brooklyn Seeds, is a monumentally-scaled garden of wildflowers climbing up the stair wall extending from Avenue U to the elevated train platform. Created in glass mosaic, the choice of plants is based upon local wildflowers that grow in unlikely places, through cracks in the sidewalk, alleys, and walls. Middlebrook’s work explores the place where the urban and manmade intersect with the natural to survive and flourish. These flowers, often weeds, include such local specimens as spotted knapweed, burdock, golden rod, aster, milkweed and daises. Above many of the mosaic plants are airborne seed pods floating away to germinate, on a journey of their own.

Click on an image above to launch the hi-res photo set.

artsfortransit:

Westchester Square-East Tremont Avenue Station // 6 subway train
Romare Bearden: City of Glass, 1993 (Proposal created by artist, 1982)
Faceted glass triptych over stairway

The hundreds of brilliant facets of Romare Bearden’s glass triptych pulsate with energy, connected by the black thread of a subway train wending past tenements and skyscrapers. The work began as a collage maquette; this was then transformed into a glowing artwork in jewel-like colored glass. The three-paneled work is installed on the wall at the stairway landing.

City of Light skillfully weaves together the spirit found in his beloved music, social concerns, and interest in trains. The work was the result of a collaboration between Bearden and the fabricators, Benoit Gilsoul and Helmut Schardt. Following the artist’s death in 1988, they were able to complete the work from the preparatory studies and instructions he had left behind.

Click on an image above to view the hi-res photo set.

artsfortransit:

Neck Road Station // Q subway train
Mary Temple: West Wall, East Light, Morning, 2011
Ceramic mosaic

Mary Temple’s West Wall, East Light, Morning, subtly shifts the commuter’s perception of the subway station by creating a soft canopy of light and shade that floods the wall of the west stair leading up to the southbound platform. The standard wall tile has been tinted, transitioning from rectangular shapes to smaller angular shapes to form an elaborate fractured mosaic.

Over the pattern of shapes, it appears that a shard of light and tree silhouettes illuminate the wall. On closer inspection viewers discover that the tiles are hand-painted in ceramic glazes. This slow reveal of the image was designed by the artist, to be discovered over time, on repeated viewing, as commuters catch a glimpse of perpetual morning light. As the artist reminds us, Henry David Thoreau said: “Vigorous thought keeps pace with the sun, the day is a perpetual morning”. The artwork may not be immediately noticed as it subtly plays with the viewer’s perception of the space, and will lead to ongoing discovery and enjoyment as its mysteries are revealed.

Click on an image above to launch the hi-res photo set.

So, you know about the week-old MTA official Arts for Transit Tumblr, right?

YOU DON’T???

I promise I will try not to reblog every entry. Oh yeah, and this new app: NYT

artsfortransit:

We are so excited that our entire art collection has been added to the Meridian App for Apple and Android mobile devices! Select a work of art, and the app provides still images, text information on the background, inspiration and significance of each work, and at selected stations, video and audio clips featuring its artists.

For the New York subway stations with wireless Internet connectivity, the app also provides turn-by-turn directions at select large stations to the precise locations of the art works. This indoor-navigation feature will continue to develop as the MTA adds cell and data service throughout the MTA network.

The app is built by Meridian Apps, a firm specializing in place-centered apps that offer spatial navigation for museums, convention halls, stadia and large stores. Using the app, subway customers can enjoy the same experience as museumgoers at some of the most prominent institutions around the world that have partnered with Meridian for special museum-specific apps, including the American Museum of Natural History.

Put this public NY art collection in the palm of your hand! (And finally find out more information about the little bronze guys in the 14th Street Station. You know the ones.)

Gothamist: "Teacher Arrested For Stealing Subway Train Car Poster" →

(and just in case you were wondering, yes, it was the Sophie Blackall piece)

(Source: snapshotsofthe7)

oh em gee.

Ten months ago I posted on Sophie Blackall’s whimsical and hilarious “Missed Connections” posters. Now, as she notes in this video from Etsy, it’s all come full circle as her work will be posted on New York subways! I absolutely cannot wait to see it.