Picture This!
What's
new this week in transportation
Art Smart Travel: public art and
transportation
The Weller Street Pedestrian Overpass,
which links the International District with Pioneer Square and the sports
stadiums, features public artwork in the grillwork panels and
lighting [enlarged
view: 35 KB].Studies
have shown that public artwork can serve as a deterrent for vandalism and
"tagging," ease stress and enrich public life.
In King County, the practical realities of transportation are merged with
the creative arts to make your trip a more memorable one.
The Weller Street Pedestrian Overpass
(above) features metal grillwork
panels and special lighting treatments with images of navigation,
China trade, salmon, sports, railroad and transportation.The
artists developed the theme of a Bridge Between Cultures to
celebrate the past and future of Pioneer Square historic district and the
International District. See a Flash side show
that features more images from the project [Macromedia Flash plug-in required, free
download].
On the Novelty
Bridge southwest of Duvall, artist Carolyn
Law collaborated with Road Services Division designers and
engineers from Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas Inc. to weave
color and texture into the design. Wave patterns in the deck
railings reflect the motion of the river underneath. Four granite
pylons stand as entrance markers. And on the bridge trusses, cool
colors lead into the Snoqualmie Valley, with warm colors as one heads
toward the city. See a three-minute streaming video interview with artist
Carolyn Law, in either high-resolution
(for T-1, DSL or cable modem)
or low-resolution
(for 56K and under).
[RealPlayer required, free
download], or read
her comments.
The bus
tunnel is its own art gallery, with
more than 30 works by 21 artists. Down
passageways [58 KB jpg]
and along handrails
[67 KB jpg], it's hard to separate the art from the architecture in
the tunnel--just call it working art.
Once you board a bus, you might also be surrounded by art. During the past
decade, King County has sponsored the popular Poetry
& Art on Buses
competition. Every year, about 60 poems are chosen from thousands
submitted to be published on placards above the seating areas in the
buses. In August, new poems will be installed from among those submitted last month.
Funding for these and other Transportation
projects comes form the King County Public Art
Program, which features
permanent, portable and architecturally sited artwork. Funds are from
the county's 1%
for the Arts Program,
which requires that 1 percent of the construction and design budget for county
projects be set aside for the purchase and display of public artwork or
artist's design services. See the roster of current and upcoming DOT
Public Arts projects [Word doc, 33
KB].
The King
County Office of Cultural Resources
publishes a detailed Public Art Map to highlight 50 sites on a loop tour
that samples some of the best of the county's 1,000-piece Public Art
Collection. Each listing includes information on how to use Metro
Transit to get to that site. Call
(206) 296-7580 to find out where you can get copies of the map.
You can also use Metro
to visit some of the area's most popular and prestigious art collections
such as the Seattle Art Museum, Wing Luke Asian Art Museum and Henry
Art Gallery at the University of Washington. We offer a Web page
that helps you plan trips to popular
destinations.
Related links
"Novel
approach to bridge design," Daily Journal of Commerce, Oct. 26,
2000
"New
bridge reflects rural community," Woodinville Weekly, Oct. 30.
2000
King County Public Art
Program
King
County Office of Cultural Resources
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