Nicolas Florimonte
“Masstransiscope”
Oct 22, 2018
Public art is all over the place, especially in New York. Although I see a lot of public art, there is only one piece that I have ever been interested in and seen other people be interested in; “Masstransiscope.” “Masstransiscope” is an animation made by Bill Brand that is located on the B and Q train line just past the Dekalb Avenue station going towards Manhattan. Brand worked with the MTA in the late 1970’s to make this piece (this was before the Arts for Transit program). The piece works like a zoetrope in that it has the paintings behind a wall with slits in it so that it creates the illusion of motion when the train moves past it. Behind the wall, there are lights to illuminate the paintings, so the piece is visible at any time of the day. However, the animation does not work if the train is moving slowly. Plus, although the piece is very visible, it is only on one side of the train and it goes by fast, so it is likely that anyone not paying attention will miss it. Brand actually liked the fact that most of the people on the train would miss it because that meant that it seemed more like a personal experience for those who did see it.
The animation itself depicts many moving shapes and images including folding shapes, a flying string that becomes a rocket taking off, and the construction of a person out of shapes, along with other things. The whole thing is very colorful and random in that it does not seem to tell a story of any kind. The piece seems like it was just made to be a fun experiment and does not have a central meaning or purpose beyond bringing some light and color to the dull subway tunnel.
I first saw “Masstransiscope” when I was a kid taking the train with my family to the city. I wasn’t paying attention, and I would have missed it if my step-father hadn’t pointed it out to me. My step-dad is a train operator and had taken that trip countless times, so he knew exactly where and when to look. Since then, my older brother and I have seen the piece plenty of times and we have shown it to my little brother as well. The piece does not speak to me or have any special meaning, the things about this piece that make it stand out to me are that it gives me something to look out for every time I ride the B or the Q past Dekalb, which is fairly often, and the nature of the animation. In terms of the animation, I find it interesting and cool that Brand thought to use the motion of the train to create something more than just a painting. I greatly enjoy this piece for both what it is and the creativity of the idea and I wish there were more pieces like it that I could see often.
Citation: Kennedy, Randy. “Restored Brooklyn Subway Art Offers Trip to 1970s.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 31 Dec. 2008, www.nytimes.com/2009/01/01/arts/design/01zoet.html.
