New York City Subway Art Hunt
The AI is 99% certain you have discovered "Signal" by Mel Chin! Nice find!
Thoughts when the art was first found: Honestly, I hadn’t even noticed—or wouldn’t have thought—that the cone pieces and the ceramic tile were connected to one another if I hadn’t taken this photo. I feel like the pieces holding hands actually seem much darker in person, like the lighting isn’t great compared to the documented photos. So I wasn’t even entirely sure if it was artwork. I mean, clearly it was, but it doesn’t really feel properly highlighted. It’s awesome to actually learn more about what the work is supposed to be about.
Signal
This is "Signal" by Mel Chin made with Stainless steel,Lighting elements,ceramic tile, Electronic light controllers in 1997 in the Broadway-Lafayette St station.
More info from New York Open Data
Today Broadway and Lafayette is an intersection of art and commerce, ringed with historic facades and glossy billboards. In Signal, artist Mel Chin, collaborating with Seneca tribe member Peter Jemison, draws upon the rich history of this crossroads, which served as a trading route for the tribes of the Six Nations (Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Mohawk, Tuscarora, and Oneida). The mezzanine walls contain figures that represent the nations with out-stretched arms reaching to one another. The main concourse has conical forms at the base of support pillars. They break up the severe geometry of the space and evoke the form of campfires, used to send signals. In this version, there are lights set within the campfire forms that brighten as trains approach and dim as trains depart. Patterns within the steel forms are based upon tribal badge patterns, which themselves were based upon a fusion of various cultures with which the tribes communicated. Another historical overlay is seen in the tile patterns that surround the concourse; they evoke rising smoke while the pattern is inspired by an Iroquois message of peace. The blue and white tile also brings to mind the presence of the Dutch in the area, known for their blue and white tile work.Mel Chin is known for making art in unexpected places, including landfills and decaying buildings. Born in Texas to Chinese parents, he spent his formative years in a primarily Latino and African American neighborhood. He insists that art should Òprovoke greater social awareness and responsibilityÓ and has been especially active in the movement to introduce art into inner-city communities.
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