Most people might not expect an artistic experience in a gritty urban subway station (other than perhaps encountering a really talented street musician playing in the great acoustics) but thanks to active promotion of public art by the New York MTA, there are plenty of colorful underground delights to see.
One of them is this giant fish mosaic at the Delancey Street station (F line) and even though I was surprised by its size and intricacy, I was not surprised to find a mosaic there.
One of my blogging friends, GrrlScientist, has been photographing and documenting this artwork for a long time. She periodically sends submissions to my Carnival of Cities blog carnival – her posts depict the huge variety of mosaic tile subway art in the MTA system. Thanks to her, I knew to look for it when I was in New York doing some work for the Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards.
A little digging taught me that the photo above is more formally known as “Shad Crossing” by artist Ming Fay; it was completed in 2004. It represents the local shad fish that swim upriver in springtime, and also the immigrants who come across oceans to live in this part of Manhattan’s Lower East Side and make a new life in America.
Another Ming Fay mosaic in the station beautifully depicts a lush cherry orchard; today’s Orchard Street, near Delancey, used to be an orchard on the Delancey family farm.
Do you have any favorite subway art or architecture in your city?
Related posts:
- Good eats on New York’s Lower East Side
- The American story is alive at the Tenement Museum
- What is it about New York, anyway? The answers beg the question
- A New York City sanctuary: the Public Library
Indeed, Arts For Transite does a fantastic job of beautifying the NYC subway. My favorite subway art is the statue of 2 little guys holding a long saw, sawing off a column (14th street). I guess since I am a musical saw player I am particularly partial to this statue 🙂
All the best,
Saw Lady
http://www.SawLady.com/blog
I’m glad to know there used to be an orchard on Orchard Street. I love the photos GrrlScientist has taken documenting the amazing mosaics on the walls of the New York subway system, especially the coelacanth:
http://intelligenttravel.typepad.com/it/2008/04/subway-art.html
I always wanted to find a way to do commercial art for any company or MTA it’s weird because I’m part of it’s art program, but I’m not sure what type of theme to go by. I do mostly CG art and hope to try to submit a piece that will end up on the subway ads for riders to view.
Thats about it for now I just keep doing small art shows here and there as well as other states or countries.
J.Mclean
HI, great mosaic! I haven’t seen it, since I do not venture far from my Queens area, but it looks wonderful!!
Wow…amazing art! Not the type of place you expect to be able to find it. Makes me want to go to New York even more.