Next time you take an MTA subway ride, check out some of the paintings, murals and other art in the so-called “underground arts museum.”
MTA has been commissioning artists to bring art to not just the subways but rail stations, buses, and pretty much the entire transit system.
In a press release, MTA says it has commissioned more than 400 artists, including some bold-faced names you might recognize such as Roy Lichtenstein.
“The one criteria we give is to create work that speaks to a place, that speaks to people who use that station and those who live in the surrounding area,” said Sandra Bloodworth, director of MTA Arts & Design.
Thanks to the ‘Percent for Art program’, which requires that up to 1% of the budget for eligible city construction projects be devoted to public art, every time a subway station or bus station is renovated, it gets some new art.
The artists get 10-20% of each project’s art budget, then the remaining funds go to installing the artwork.
“You might come and visit New York and see artists in a museum,” Bloodworth said. “Then see some of the same artists’ work in the New York subway. Forty years ago, you couldn’t say that.”
So after you check one of the many art galleries in NYC, take a subway ride.