railway

Posts tagged
with railway

Photography

Enchanting Photos Frame Meandering Industrial Relics Along Taipei’s Jianqing Historic Trail

The Taipingshan National Forest Recreation Area in northern Yilan is one of Taipei’s prized ecological destinations for its mist-covered scenery and lush vegetation that thrives in the dewy environment. It’s also home to Jianqing Historic Trail, a winding pathway that follows abandoned sections of railways and crumbling trestles that are relics of the region’s past as a major logging hub. Taiwanese photographer Masuki Rina visited the overgrown tracks to document its ethereal and enchanting atmosphere in a captivating series, which shows fog hanging over the landscape, moss covering wooden ballasts, and foliage sprouting from nearly every inch of the frame.

Rina shot dozens of images from the trail, which she shares on Behance, along with her other landscape and street photography. (via Plain Magazine)

 

Design

Upcycled Railbikes Travel through California’s Ancient Redwood Groves as Pedal-Powered Designs

Following the same route of the long-running Skunk Train that thrums through California’s Mendocino County, a new contraption from the historic rail brings cyclists and outdoor enthusiasts through the pristine redwood groves with a smaller carbon footprint. Railbikes are two-seated, four-wheeled designs that run along the centuries-old tracks through the ancient forests just outside of Fort Braggs. Made with lightweight materials, the upcycled rigs are largely pedal-powered, although they have an electric component for hills and more difficult stretches of the miles-long route.

The new offering marks a growing trend in eco-tourism and a shift toward outdoor activities that leave little impact on the environment, with similar offerings cropping up along rails in Carson City, Sacramento, and Las Vegas that have been entirely or mostly abandoned. Skunk Train has plans in the works to expand its routes in the coming months, and you can follow its developments on its site and Instagram. Until then, watch the video below to tag along on a trek through the towering redwoods. (via swissmiss)

 

Design

Old Railway Tracks Converge to Form an Arced Pavilion in Sydney by Studio Chris Fox

In 2017, artist Chris Fox utilized decades-old wooden escalators to create a sculptural ribbon above Sydney’s Wynyard Station. His latest project titled “Interchange Pavilion” similarly repurposes vintage railway tracks to construct a 350-square-meter outdoor pavilion. The work is comprised of 250 meters of stainless-steel rails, 15 tons of glass-reinforced concrete, and 1,400 pieces of hardwood. Built in sections, the rails in “Interchange Pavilion” offer several paths upward, where they converge at a central point.

If you’re in Sydney, check out the newly-opened public artwork, which was unveiled August 25. Otherwise, find more from Fox on Instagram.

 

Art Design

Modern Ruins: An Artist’s Vehicle Designed to Traverse 9,000 Kilometers of Abandoned Railways in Mexico

What do you do with the abandoned railways that once held the promise of trans-continental linkage and progress? Some have converted them into tourist-friendly pathways. But Mexican artists and brothers Ivan Puig and Andrés Padilla Domene decided to traverse the nearly 9,000 km of railway in Mexico and Ecuador that, in 1995, was abandoned and left to decay. But they didn’t travel in any old fashion. In a project that ran from 2010 to 2012 the artists rode in a striking silver road-rail vehicle called SEFT-1, which they designed and built themselves so as to travel both on rail and road.

The multi-year journey explored abandoned rail but also the notion of modern ruins, and “how the ideology of progress is imprinted onto historic landscapes.”