Arts on the Line

The Project Arts on the Line consisted of far-reaching activities to install public art in train stations and subway stations of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority ( MBTA ) in the metropolitan area called Greater Boston, Massachusetts in the United States.

History

The first works of art were installed in the late 1970s, later followed by an expansion of the original investment at 20 works program to other stations. The project was the first of its kind in the United States and served as a model for similar projects in other U.S. states later. 1977 received the MBTA for the purpose by the Federal Transit Administration, a government grant of $ 45,000 to equip for the development of a plan in the course of the expansion of the Boston Red Line newly constructed or renovated stations with works of art.

In 1978, the MBTA finally entered into a partnership to implement the goals set by the Cambridge Arts Council (CAC ). The CAC developed the Arts on the Line program independently and managed it well. S. 69 f

In 1985 the first phase was completed. A total of 20 artworks were hitherto been installed at a total cost of $ 695,000 - in 2011 this corresponded to a value between 1.3 million and 2.5 million.

Installations

The stations Harvard, Porter, Davis and Alewife were the first metro stations of the MBTA, in which works of art of the Arts on the Line project were issued. The following tables show all the works of art in the stations of the Red Line and Orange Line - in the stations of the Blue Line, with the exception of the station installed state that is also a stop on the Orange Line, not works of art.

Stations of the Orange Line

• " Polychrome painted star" by Toshiro Katayama
• Wrought iron gate of Albert Paley

• " Transcendental Greens " by Dan George
• " The Subway Collector " by Thomas Hurley
• "Lies" by Ethan Canin

• " Drift" by Mary Bonina
• "Reflections" by Daria Mondesire

• "Life Around Here " by Malou Flato
• "Mrs. Baez Serves Coffee on the Third Floor "by Martin Espada
• " The Dinner " by Rosario Morales

• Graphic illustrations of the artist group Hyde Square Task Force in cooperation with Roberto Chao
• "Faces In the Crowd " by Linda and James Toatley
• " Any Good Throat" by Christopher Gilbert
• " Grandmothers " by Christine Palamidessi Moore

• "Neighborhood " by Susan Thompson
• "Hometown " by Virgil Luix Overbea

• " Geometree " by Paul Goodnight
• " Stony Brook Dance " by John Scott
• " Massachusetts Avenue Station " by Bruce Taylor
• " Harriet Tubman a.k.a. Moses "by Samuel Allen
• " Four Letters Home " by Will Holton

• "My Robe" by Peter Rodman
• " Drum" by Sharon Cox

• "Neon for Back Bay Station " by Stephen Antonakos
• " Counterpoint " by Jane Barnes
• " If My Boundary Stops Here " by Ruth Whitman

• "Caravan " by Richard Gubernick
• "Mr. Yee is in the Garden " by Maria Gordett
• "The Great World Transformed " by Gish Jen

• " Colors on the Line " by Toshihiro Katayama

• "A Joyful Noise " by Lujuan Renrick
• " Man's Best Friend" by Jason Vassell

Stations of the Red Line

• A 12,000 square meter artificial landscape by Richard Fleischner
• Tiles with abstract motifs of David Davidson
• " Alewife Cows " by Joel Janowitz
• Two usable as benches sculptures by William Keyser, Jr.
• " The End of the Red Line " by Alejandro and Moira Sina
• 100 tiles with natural motifs of Nancy Webb

• "Ten Figures" by James Tyler
• 249 designed by schoolchildren tiles ( "Children's Tile Mural" )
• "Poetry" by various authors
• "Sculpture With a D" by Sam Gilliam

• "Gift of the Wind" by Susumu Shingu
• " Ondas " by Carlos Dorrien
• "Glove Cycle " by Mags Harries
• Granite bollards William Reimann
• " Porter Square Megaliths " by David Phillips

• " Gateway to Knowledge " by Anne Norton
• " Omphalos " by Dimitri Hadzi
• "Blue Sky" by Gyorgy Kepes
• "New England Decorative Art " by Joyce Kozloff

• " Andrew Square Time Capsule " by Ross Miller

The interactive artwork Kendall band

In the station Kendall / MIT Paul Matisse installed at a cost of $ 90,000 in the period 1986 to 1988, the interactive work of art Kendall band. It consists of three mounted between the rails parts " Pythagoras ", " Kepler " and " Galileo " and can be moved from the waiting passengers from both platforms via lever action so that it is three musical instruments basically. The materials were aluminum, steel and teak used. Matisse chose an installation between the tracks to prevent vandalism: "There was a power rail on one side and on the other side, and so I held the position for a safe place ." Another interactive artwork of Matisse with the name " The Musical Fence ", in German " musical fence ", is now in the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park in Lincoln.

Pythagoras

The named after the Greek philosopher factory consists of 16 tubular bells made ​​of aluminum with a diameter of about 4 inches (102 mm) and a wall thickness of 0.25 inch ( 6.4 mm), which are tuned in B Minor. The different length of the tubes produced different high and low tones. By pressing the lever by visitors hammers are activated teak, beating against the tubes, thus creating the sound. The focal points of the asymmetrical slots tubes were placed so that the sound is always accompanied by a slight vibrato.

In order to prevent the hammers strike too hard against the tubes, they are decoupled from the levers on the platforms. To trigger a hammer, the lever must be moved rhythmically to produce sufficient mechanical resonance. Which hammer is raised to depends, among other things, on which levers were last moved in any form.

Kepler

Named after the German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler instrument consists essentially of a metal ring with 1.4 m diameter and a weight of 57 kg, making the sound fis, when it is excited by a hammer. This clay forms with the sounds of Pythagorean harmonic fifth. Once stimulated, the sound for about 5 minutes is heard.

Galileo

Named after the Italian scientist Galileo Galilei work consists mainly of a metal plate, " the size of a barn door ." By gaining leverage it to vibrate, thus producing sounds that resemble a incoming train or thunder.

Maintenance

The Kendall tape has long been the only work of art at the Arts on the Line program, which consisted of moving parts, and from the start was very fragile. The instrument " Pythagoras " was no longer functioning before the other two were completely installed. Only with time Matisse was able to stabilize the work so far that repairs had to be carried out less frequently, but still regularly. During operation, this was not possible, so that the work could not start until around 1:30 clock in the night forever once the last train had left the station. Since he found no one who took this for him, Matisse had to perform even the repairs. In 2007, however, the now 74 year old artist, these works gave up after 20 years of age.

As a result, the complete works quickly fell into disrepair, and, moreover, the original plans were lost due to a hard disk crash. In 2010, finally decided a group of students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), to take care of the installation, and founded the Kendall tape Preservation Society.