transportation

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Art

Nick Cave’s Energetic ‘Soundsuits’ Dance Along the New York City Subway in a 360-Foot Mosaic

Spanning the 42 St. Connector between Times Square and Bryant Park in New York City is a troupe of dancing figures dressed in vibrant costumes of feather and fur. The ebullient characters are based on the iconic series of Soundsuits by Chicago-based artist Nick Cave (previously) and are the first part of a massive permanent installation titled Each One, Every One, Equal All in the public transit corridor.

Stretching 360 feet, “Every One” is the first in the mosaic trio and displays more than two dozen of the adorned figures inlaid in ceramic tiles. The pieces are based on James Prinz’s photos of Cave’s original designs, which are soulful and energetic forms that blend fashion, sculpture, and performance in full-body coverings. Soundsuits “camouflage the shape of the wearer, enveloping and creating a second skin that hides gender, race, and class, thus compelling the audience to watch without judgment.” Cave describes the impetus for the project.

Times Square is one of the busiest, most diverse, and fabulously kinetic places on the planet. For this project, I took the aboveground color, movement, and cross-pollination of humanity, bundled it into a powerful and compact energy mass that is taken underground and delivered throughout the station and passage. ‘Every One’ places the viewer within a performance, directly connecting them with the Soundsuits as part of an inclusive community of difference.

“Every One” was officially unveiled today with a short video work showing the colorful figures in motion playing every 15 minutes outside the corridor. “Each One” and “Equal All” are scheduled for 2022, and once complete, the project will stretch 4,600-square-feet with more than four dozen dancers. It will mark both Cave’s largest permanent installation and the MTA’s most expansive commissioned mosaic to date.

To learn more about Soundsuits and the project’s history, read this explainer in Public Delivery, and follow the artist’s work on Instagram. (via Kottke)

 

Animation Photography

A Short Film Turns Footage of Major Highways into a Dizzying Animation

“Circulatory Systems,” a mesmerizing short film by Worldgrapher and the Hong Kong-based production company Visual Suspect, deftly compares major highways to human arteries and veins. Made by simply cropping and duplicating real footage, the dizzying video twists and turns through complex interchanges that are repeated in patterns and emblazoned with headlights and the city’s glow. Many of the shots descend into the center of the transportation systems, glimpsing the moving cars and traffic lights. To watch more of Visual Suspect’s animated projects, head to Vimeo and Instagram. You also might like this trippy music video by Cyriak Harris.

 

Design

Drive Through Indonesia with Rebel Riders, A Group That Modifies Vespas with Idiosyncratic Designs

“One Vespa, a million brothers,” says Nando Anjasmara Azani. The Vespa enthusiast is part of Rebel Riders, a community in Indonesia dedicated to modifying the Italian scooters. In a recent video by Great Big Story, Azani and his compatriots share a glimpse into their pastime that includes altering the body with extra wheels and adorning the exterior with tree branches, animal skulls, and other finds. Every year, the group meets up to tinker with each others’ rides in multiple celebrations that occur on each island in Indonesia.

Check out the tricked-out scooters and dive into more of Great Big Story’s adventures around the world on YouTube. (via Uncrate)

 

Design

A Partially Submerged Train Car Provides a Dramatic Entrance to Frankfurt’s Bockenheimer Warte Subway Station

Subway stations are typically just a means to an end, simple structures that allow a large overflow of commuters to enter and exit at will. It is less common for the design to be a destination in itself, like the popular Bockenheimer Warte subway entrance in Frankfurt, Germany. The station, erected in 1986, was built to look as if an old tram car had crash landed into the sidewalk that surrounds the station. The entrance was designed by the architect Zbigniew Peter Pininski who was inspired by René Magritte surrealist paintings. Although slightly dark, the work does have a hint of magical realism, making riders feel as if they are arriving at Platform 9 3/4 rather than just another subway stop in Frankfurt. (via My Modern Met)

Design

A Mesmerizing Glow-in-the-Dark Bike Path Unveiled in Poland

Seeking to make bike paths safer and more accessible in the evening and night hours, urban planners in Lidzbark Warminski, Poland just unveiled a new glow-in-the-dark bike lane. The path is made from small crystal-like particles of phosphor called ‘luminophores’ that charge during sunlight hours and can glow for up to 10 hours. The lane was built by TPA Instytut Badań Technicznych Sp. z o.o who were partially inspired by Studio Roosegaarde’s stunning solar-powered bike path in the Netherlands mentioned here in 2014. Unlike the Netherland’s concept which uses solar-powered LEDs, this new path in Poland requires no external power source. The design is currently being tested to see how it withstands regular wear and tear. You can read more over on Inhabitat.

Art Design

Outfits Sourced From German Public Transportation Fabric by Menja Stevenson

Like most that read this article, German artist Menja Stevenson has had her fair share of rides in city buses and trains, each of which has forced her (and you) to sit on top of garishly designed uniform seating. The fabric, as investigated by this article on the BBC, is not only made to outlast spills and stains, but also trends, as many of the painfully drab designs can last a decade or more.

Interested in this accident-resistant material, Stevenson began sourcing and creating outfits out of the fabric in 2006 for her project Bustour. The project forced her to persuade German transportation companies to personally ship her the fabric, as they are not commercially available. After finally obtaining the material she designed clothes that aesthetically camouflaged herself within each bus or train interior matching the fabric, capturing the reaction of fellow passengers.

“Wearing them, you sweat like crazy, they feel like a knight’s armor and it’s hard to act naturally,” said Stevenson. “I couldn’t believe that many people didn’t realize the connection seeing me and the seats together. Did they think that it was sheer coincidence? Some curious people at least talked to me, and a very few laughed, but most passengers would look shyly at me and quickly look the other way again.”

You can see archived documentation of these reactions (or lack there of) on Stevenson’s website. If you’re searching for a slightly more practical use for old transportation fabric take a look at the bags and accessories made from airplane seat fabric by Fallen Furniture (previously). (via This Isn’t Happiness)