Although the NYC transit system is far from beautiful, efforts have been made to beautify it. One such project is the MTA Arts for Transit, founded in 1985 in an effort to make the system inviting and attractive. A variety of media is displayed – ceramics, sculpture, posters, and illuminated photographs.

From the official MTA website: “Both well-established and emerging artists add to a growing collection of works created in the materials of the system — mosaic, ceramic, tile, bronze, steel, and faceted glass. The art can be seen in the miles of walls within the system and in the gates, windscreens, plazas, and architecture… Artists are chosen through a competitive process that uses selection panels, comprised of visual arts professionals and community representatives, which review and select artists.”

Many well-known artists are featured, such as Roy Lichtenstein, Jacob Lawrence, Eric Fischl, Elizabeth Murray, Tom Otterness, Nancy Spero, and Vito Acconci. The photograph is a piece at 34th Street/Penn Station titled Garden of Circus Delights done in 2001 by Eric Fischl. “A series of murals takes commuters from the familiar to the bizarre circus world. The murals portray fire-breathers, acrobats, and animals; gradually one realizes that a commuter has left home and been pulled into the circus, where he meets incredible circus characters and then, on the other side of the tent, he emerges in the white light and harmony, a commuter again, but transported and transformed.”

The hand-painted mural has all but died. In the last two years, Colossal Media has revived the art, with dozens of their signs appearing around the city. According to the NY Times, Colossal Media is “a two-year-old Williamsburg company that is trying to revive the labor-intensive, near-obsolete craft of hand-painted signs.” Cofounders Adrian Moeller and Paul Lindahl had their hands in graffiti before starting Colossal, along with graphics and sign painting experience.

The company has long-term leases on a number of building walls in the city. It takes a few days for the art to go up, with painters working 12-14 hour days. The mural in the photo was for a boutique on the Lower East Side called Missbehave at 231 Eldridge Street, which was opened by Samantha Moeller, who now is publishing Missbehave Magazine and managing her multimedia website (now closed). 

Strolling through the Lower East Side with a friend, we came upon this unusual storefront at 57 Stanton Street (click here for 2nd photo). Unfamiliar to me and my friend (who is an artist), we learned that this was the FusionArts Museum: “FusionArts Museum is the only contemporary art space in New York City that is exclusively dedicated to the exhibition and archiving of fusion art – art that goes beyond the terms assemblage, mixed media, and multimedia.” Unfortunately, it was closed, but their website shows their works in the various galleries.

Judging from the location and frontage, one would assume an iconoclastic, edgy art scene, so their manifesto did not come as a surprise. Many sources credit Bob Orsillo from the 1960s for starting the Fusion Arts Movement in the U.S.A. (I did not see him referenced on the FusionArts Museum site). Orsillo himself traces it back to the 14th century. I am not an art critic or historian, so I will leave it to you to sort this out…

The Rubin Museum of Art opened on October 4, 2004 and is the first museum in the Western World dedicated to the art of the Himalayas and surrounding regions. Their collection consists of paintings, sculptures, and textiles with books, paintings, photographs, and artifacts. Computer terminals accessing the Museum’s website and affiliated sites offer other examples of Himalayan and related art. Although works of art range in date over two millennia, most reflect major periods and schools of Himalayan art from the 12th century onward.

The Museum occupies what was formerly a portion of the Barneys department store in Chelsea. Read about it here at their website. It was redesigned and renovated with a team headed by the architectural firm of Beyer Blinder Belle and included Atelier Imrey Culbert, associate museum designers, and Milton Glaser Incorporated graphics. Many important details within the building have been retained, most notably Andree Putman’s steel and marble staircase that spirals dramatically through the seven-story gallery tower.

The galleries are spacious, and the museum is extremely pleasant and very manageable. They run 6 different exhibitions, one on each floor. The museum includes space for contemporary and historical photography, a classroom, a state-of-the-art theater for multi-media events and performances, and a cafe and shop. Recommended…

The mysterious former carriage and horse stable at 11 Spring Street has been (virtually) unoccupied for decades. Click here for more photos. Built in 1888, its most famous owner was John Simpson, who purchased the building in the 1970s. An eccentric inventor, Simpson lived in the massive 5-story building alone with his bizarre mechanical gadgets. In 2003, the building was sold to Lachlan Murdoch, son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, with the intention of converting it into a spectacular single-family residence. Left to languish again, the building was again sold, this time to developers Caroline Cummings and Bob Elias – it will be converted to luxury condominiums.

During all this time, graffiti accumulated on the exterior walls. The place became “known worldwide as a mecca for street artists, some of whom have covered its sooty facade with a pastiche of graffiti and poster art.” The new owners wanted to pay tribute to the street art, so they arranged a gala “grand closing” with the Wooster Collective, called Wooster on Spring. Forty-five of the world’s best street artists were invited to cover the walls of all five floors with artwork. After two months, the show was opened to the public for three days – December 15, 16, and 17, after which all the art was to be destroyed. It was an unbelievable mob scene – lines to get in going around a full city block with a 3-4 hour wait. Gothamist did an extensive job of covering this story, and I recommend this link (and the various links there) to see photos of the interior art…

This is the vestibule and lobby of the Fred F. French building at 551 Fifth Avenue at 45th Street. They have been designated as an interior landmark. On the exterior, the 38-story Art Deco building uses a variety of materials – a limestone base, orange brickwork, terra cotta decor on the setbacks, and themed rectangular panels. Click here for photo.

The structure was built in 1927 as business headquarters for real estate tycoon Fred F. French. French was a self-made man – read his rags-to-riches story here. He was also responsible for Tudor City and Knickerbocker Village. Tudor City was funded by selling investor shares under the “French Plan.” Knickerbocker Village, a low-income publicly subsidized urban-redevelopment housing project, on the other hand, became a problem with disputes between French and his tenants – this eventually led to creation of NYC’s rent-control laws.

A Babylonian influence runs through the French Building and can be seen in the lobby. From New York 1930 Architecture and Urbanism Between the Two World Wars, published by Rizzoli in 1987: “Inspired by the Ishtar Gate, the decorative program was a most literal evocation of Manhattan as the New Babylon, of the skyscraper as Nebuchadnezzar’s hanging garden in the desert.”