Subway Art

Beginning my fifth week of living here, my underground-travel-anxiety is greatly diminished.  I still get anxious when service changes require me to take an unfamiliar route at a moment's notice and I'm the route (and thus the station exits) are dark mysteries, but for the most part I no longer steel myself before walking down the steps into a station.  I've even learned to love Express trains.

My favorite ride is on the morning rush Q train. The cars are very crowded, which means that if I hang back, I can get a standing spot by the door looking across at the starboard side of the train.  And that is a terribly cool place to look, thanks to Bill Brand, who created an art installation of still panels that morph into a "motion picture" as trains speed by. I watch his Masstransiscope every time I can position myself to catch a glimpse of it. (My favorite bit is the leaping squid near the end of the piece.)

After the Masstransiscope, the Q barrels out onto the Manhattan Bridge.  On a day like today the brilliant morning sunshine glints off of the Manhattan skyscrapers and the East River, careening sparkles and shine around the train. And it turns out that I'm a sucker for viewing the Empire State Building, from anywhere.

As the Q is an express, once the train reenters the tunnel in Manhattan it barrels right through several stations before reaching my stop at Herald Square. Prince Street is one of those skipped and when I have that great viewing spot by the door, I turn around to see Carrying On from the Port-side of the train.  Miniature art is fascinating to me, as are silhouettes, as is a concept that revolves around typical people of a time and place caught in the act of ordinary living -- it's fantastic.  At some point I'll have to plan a field trip to Prince Street just to look closely at each image.  (Not such a hardship, considering Dean and DeLuca is around the corner...)

So, Danny Bu and Phoebe Felts, it took me just under a month to learn your appreciation for the subway. Thanks for sharing!

Soundtrack to this morning's commute is courtesy of my Celtic Favorites playlist:

• Arabesque, The Gneeveguilla Reel
• Ashley MacIsaac & Terry Radigan, The Wedding Funeral
• Banshee in the Kitchen, The Girls Set
• Bow Triplets, Boys from the Blue Hill
• Cady Finlayson, Lanigan's Ball
• Carbon Leaf, Life Less Ordinary
• Carbon Leaf, Love, Loss, Hope, Repeat
• Carbon Leaf, The War Was in Color
• Carbon Leaf, American Tale

First published in NYC to the Nines