Art In Transit: 52nd Street
March 9, 2018
Hey Market-Frankford Line riders! You know when you pass by 52nd Street on the El? Or is that your home stop and you walk through the station every day? Either way, it’s easy to pass through it, or by it, and not appreciate all of the details, and even, artwork.
The 52nd Street Station on the Market-Frankford Line is part of SEPTA’s Art in Transit program, with colorful, eye-catching designs that spice up your daily commute.
There was once a clock at the intersection of 52nd and Market Streets, an intersection that used to be hailed as the “Main Street of West Philly.”
Photo credit to Hidden City Daily
While that fixture no longer adorns the elevated tracks of the neighborhood, artists Erica Loustau and Henry Loustau pay tribute to it with these installations: Revolutions of Harmony/Onward & Upward/Constellation 2008.
To pay tribute to that beloved clock, three individual sculptures mark what once was.
There is more than what just meets the eyes; in these images, train gears blend with clocks and universal symbols of time. These brightly colored powder coat steel pieces are complexly layered, referencing the older style of mechanical clocks which once marked our daily lives (and commutes) long before our LCD screens and the digital clock displays on our smart phones. Additionally, these varied compositions represent the diversity of the community, and the infinite possibilities that we’re given with each human interaction.
Art is subjective, and its meanings are different to for each person. What does Revolutions of Harmony/Onward & Upward/Constellation mean to you?
