For thousands of Bay Ridge natives, the 86th Street R train station is both the first and last point of their daily commute. The repetition of this everyday journey eventually creates a monotony of movement, and the sights of the trip become the familiar, which become the expected, which over time fade from the conscious eye. And among the items that may filter through the mind’s constant input of sensory detail is the tiled mural that spans a wall of the 86th Street Station: a mosaic of glass that depicts a scene of open blue skies, grand green trees, and monumental buildings. These buildings include three-story mansions adorned with people resting on the porches and in the windows, and a church surrounded by community members. The landscape of the predominant azure skies is dotted with lanky, bushy trees. Gazing at this work conjures a feeling of peace- of sunny days and refreshing breezes.
I have only recently come to know that this work of public art is entitled “Heydays”. Brooklyn Heights artist Amy Bennett was commissioned with the project in 2011, in time to commemorate the station’s renovation. Bennett had never before set foot in Bay Ridge, and moreover was an artist who specialized in small oil paintings- certainly a far cry from the wall-spanning piece that she was tasked with creating. To learn about her muse, she read books on the community and surveyed the area on foot, settling on a design that emulated some of the 19th century homes that rest on older sections of the neighborhood. Her specialization in landscape paintings helped her to prepare an oil painting of her idea, which she then sent to a glass crafting team in Germany; the image was replicated in the form of thousands of glass pieces that fit together into a grand mosaic.
But like most of the thousands of subway-goers who pass through the 86th Street Station each day, I had no knowledge of any of the history behind the mosaic. In fact, it wasn’t until two years ago that I learned of the mural’s existence, when it was featured as a landmark Pokéstop in the then-popular mobile game Pokémon Go; and although it no doubt drew the attention of many to the mosaic, it is merely known in-game as the “86th Street Station Mural”, and offers no description of the artwork or its history. Before that, I had barely traveled through the station, and on the rare occasion that I did, I never paid much mind to the thousands of colored glass tiles on the wall. Even now, as I enter this station on my way to Brooklyn College every day, it’s easy to dismiss “Heydays” in the hectic rush for the docking trains, and its constant presence to the everyday commuter prompts them to tune out its existence. Furthermore, the mural’s coloration has faded over the years, causing the skies to appear less blue and the buildings less vibrant. This leaves a certain irony to the art’s title “Heydays”, which refers to a past period of prosperity or popularity; the mosaic’s appearance today, when juxtaposed with its original splendor, evokes a feeling of nostalgia and reminiscence for the piece itself instead of the Bay Ridge community that it depicts.
But the use of the term “Heydays” to describe Bay Ridge’s aesthetic in the first place draws attention to the end of an era- a classical period that closed its chapter in the community’s history long ago. And although we are goaded to think about the time that has already transpired, I believe that the piece can be used as a tool of reflection for ourselves as we rush to the train each morning and tiredly ascend the stairs each evening. As we look at the image of grand homes and peaceful landscapes, we can instill in ourselves the thought that what we do each and every day is eventually to improve our lives and thus that of the community. The deeds of every one of us each become a tile that constitute a grander image of the community that we hope to shape for ourselves.
Works Cited
Chapman, Ben. “Brooklyn Artist Has Heart of Glass: Working on Mural for Subway Station – NY Daily News.” Nydailynews.com, New York Daily News, 3 Mar. 2011, www.nydailynews.com/new-york/brooklyn/brooklyn-artist-heart-glass-working-mural-subway-station-article-1.117023.
“Heydays in Bay Ridge.” Blather From Brooklyn, 23 June 2014, blatherfrombrooklyn.wordpress.com/2013/09/27/heydays-in-bay-ridge/.
