New York, NY--New York City's Canal Street subway station will be host
to an elaborate installation of a Venetian canal created by Russian
artist Alexander Brodsky from December 4, through January 31,
1997. Subway riders will be able to see this theatrical display of a
gondola scene, which is situated on unused tracks, as they walk along
the platform to transfer between the #6 and the N/R lines.
Organized collaboratively by the Public Art Fund and MTA Arts for
Transit, the installation incorporates numerous lighting and technical
devices to create the astonishing illusion of a Venetian canal
materializing on the tracks. Brodsky has constructed five gondolas
using aluminum, wood and tin, which float in a 50 foot long and 1 foot
deep vinyl-lined pool of water and which appear to bob effortlessly
with the help of a wave-making pump system. A couple floats quietly
enjoying their romantic voyage, while an intimate Venetian passageway,
painted on a silk scrim, can be glimpsed in the distance.
"While the Canal Street complex is undergoing renovation as part of
the MTA's ongoing Capital Program, the Public Art Fund has teamed up
with MTA Arts for Transit to bring a delightful diversion to our
customers during the holiday season," said E. Virgil Conway, MTA
chairman.
Susan K. Freedman, Public Art Fund President states that "Alexander
Brodsky's remarkable installation should be seen by all New
Yorkers. We can't all go to Venice, but thanks to Brodsky's vision, we
can experience the unforgettable transformation of this Canal Street
Station passageway. Brodsky's project confirms the power of temporary
public art to create magical and thought provoking moments in the most
diverse public spaces."
Artist Alexander Brodsky describes the viewer's surreal experience of
the installation as one walks through the subway as "one of the
millions of strange things that happen to you in the city. Passing
through the long space, you suddenly see across the tracks a
mirage--lights, water, boats--you see a canal. It's both real and
unreal at the same time. You stop briefly trying to understand why
it's here and then you go on with your life, keeping the mirage in
your memory. You might come back another day to check.-was it a dream
or not?" He hopes the project will "evoke the memory of the real, and
very important, canal that had been at this place many years ago in
the very beginning of New York City, and which later gave name to the
street and subway station."
Born in 1955, Brodsky was a founding member of a small but influential
group of artists and architects known as the "Paper Architects," so
called because during the old Soviet Regime the only outlet for their
creative vision was on paper. In the late 80's he became known in the
West for his beautifully executed and fantastical gallery
installations. Most recently, Brodsky has focused upon proposals for
public spaces. The Canal Street Subway Project is the artist's first
public project to be fully realized in the U.S.
