Added: 03/28/2006 |
A Look at the Unique and Aesthetically Pleasing Metro Arts of the WorldMost metro, subways or underground railways are rather dull from an aesthetic point of view. Good station design and aesthetic metro
architecture mean extra effort and higher costs for the metro operators but it eventually pays off when a metro is more than just a means of transport but something the population can be proud of. Works of art or metro arts can be delightful, inspiring and thought-provoking for day-to-day commuters as well as an attraction for visitors.
There are cities which explicitly foster metro arts and good architecture in subways. In former socialist countries, the most spectacular metros were designed as 'palaces for the people'. Brussels, Montreal, Stockholm boast metros with noteworthy collections of metro arts in the stations.
The Washington subway system is consistently planned to have user-friendly and good looking architecture, consequently most stations look similar. Cities like Munich and Prague have metro stations of standardized architecture but with distinct interior designs of good quality. Hong Kong Airport Line features unique and interesting stations by distinct architects. So there are quite a number of remarkable metro systems in the world each with its own feel and characteristics. Some of the early underground and elevated stations in Berlin represent a style of metro architecture. The co-funding of the U-Bahn line to Dahlem by the posh district of Wilmersdorf facilitated a prestigious architecture in some stations. Some of the newer stations in Berlin are minimalist in design; some have a colorful but unattractive 1970s design and all of them are quite interesting.
There are works of art in some of the metro stations in Athens. Some of the newer stations have even been turned into downright museums. The upper concourse hall of Syntagma station has murals and lots of archaeological displays.
Metro art is not too obvious in Hong Kong, but MTR's Art in Stations initiative brings metro arts into the stations since 1998. There's an Open Gallery project on the Island Line and in many of Hong Kong's metro stations, live performances and art exhibitions take place.
The capital of the Ukraine, Kiev, boasts a spectacular metro with three lines and stations that are diverse in design. Apart from those in
traditional soviet-style magnificence there are a couple of rather futuristic stations.
Boston subway was the first in America that started to include works of art in stations in 1967 and continues to do so with new stations. Murals, sculptures and other types of artworks have been acquired through donations and art competitions. The Metro Silver line in Boston is really just a bus line but they call it "a state-of-the-art rubber-tired rapid transit system". High-tech buses run through tunnels like a subway and stop at architecturally interesting stations.
The city of Los Angeles allocated 0.5% of subway construction costs to the creation of original metro arts. There are works of art in all the stations of the Red Line and many other stations. Hollywood/Vine station on the Red Line features Hollywood's golden history with theater projectors presented like sculptures. Film reels cover the vaulted ceiling.
User-friendly and aesthetically beautiful metro arts are one of the primary reasons that draw tourists to use the metro.
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