New York's 'Underground Museum' Pleases Passerby

纽约地下博物馆娱乐路人

In NYC’s Underground Art Museum, Works to Delight the Passerby

Millions of New Yorkers and visitors ride the city's subwayand other trains each day. The public transportation system offers more than just a trip, however. It also has one of the most extensive public art collections in the world, with much of it under city streets.

数百万的纽约人和游客每天乘坐地铁和其它列车出行。公共交通体系不仅仅搭载乘客，交通站点还有世界上最广泛的公众艺术品展览，而这些艺术品都是在城市地下街道里。

Some people call it New York's "underground art museum." It includes more than 250 works of art. They are meant to brighten everyone's ride around the city.

一些人称这些地下展览的艺术品为“地下博物馆”，其中包括250多件艺术品。它们让所有乘坐公共交通工具出行的人眼前一亮。

There is the huge painting of the night sky on the ceiling of Grand Central Terminal. New Yorkers have been looking up at that artwork for 100 years.

纽约中央车站穹顶画着一副巨大的夜空图。这个艺术作品已经有100年的历史了。

In the nearby Grand Central Market, you can find a large, crystal light fixture. The ice-like stones hang on the chandelier'smany branches, making the piece look like an upside-down olive tree. Sculptor Donald Lipski completed the work in 1988.

中央市场附近，你可以看到一个巨大的水晶灯饰。树枝状吊灯晶莹剔透，每一枝都像是橄榄树垂下的分支。雕刻家多纳德·利普斯基1988年完成这件作品。

Other artists include new ones and the long-famous: Roy Lichtenstein's pop art porcelain enamel mural is found at Times Square. Sol Lewitt's intensely colored "Whirls and Twirls" is at Columbus Circle.

其他一些刚出道的和久负盛名的艺术家的作品有：时代广场上罗伊·利希滕斯坦的波普艺术搪瓷壁画。索尔·勒维特设计的“旋风和回旋”的哥伦布圆环。

Sandra Bloodworth has directed the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's arts program since it began in 1985.

自1985年开始，桑德拉·布鲁德沃斯一直指导纽约大都会运输局的艺术项目建设工作。

"But actually, it really began much earlier. When the subway was founded in 1904, a percentage, if you will, of money was set aside to create a special ornamentation within the system, in order to make the place this very special place that people would want to use."

“实际上，艺术品的工作设计开始的更早。早在1904年，地铁建成时，只要你愿意，拿出一少部分钱就能在这个特别的地铁候车区进行创作。”

For the past 30 years, artists have been asked to make works that relate to city life or to the neighborhood around a train station. There are coastal scenesat stations near the Atlantic Ocean. Native plants and flowers can be found in a garden scene in Brooklyn.

过去30年，人们希望艺术家能够创作一些跟城市生活有关或者跟车站相关的艺术作品。靠近大西洋的车站有很多沿岸风景。布鲁克林地区的公园里有很多当地的植物和花。

Wildlife mosaics greet visitors arriving at the subway station next to the American Museum of Natural History. Sculptor Tom Otterness created the small, rounded, metal creatures that populate another station.

美国自然历史博物馆附近的地铁站有一些野生动物的马赛克图像欢迎游客。在另一个车站，雕刻师奥特尼斯创作了一种小的、圆形的金属生物。

At Times Square, Jane Dickson's mosaics of "The Revelers," suggest New Year's Eve celebrants. Rider Tonya Pierre praises the underground art.

时代广场上，简·迪克森的马赛克图像“狂欢者”标明新年前夕人们的庆祝活动。骑士坦雅·皮耶称赞这些地下艺术。

"When I'm stressed, I look at the subway art. I love the colors. Where I live, they have a mosaic of a man and a woman, like, floating across the water, and it's beautiful. It's just beautiful to have art everywhere."

“我感到焦虑不安时，就会看看这些地铁艺术。我喜欢这些色彩，我居住的地方有马赛克的男士和女士，就像是漂浮在水面，非常漂亮。到处可以看到艺术，非常漂亮。”

Nearby is Alejandra Acosta, a visitor from Colombia. She stopped to take a picture of a colorful glass mosaic mural by the former artist Jacob Lawrence.

来自哥伦比亚的游客亚历杭德拉·阿克斯卡停下来跟艺术家雅各布·劳伦斯创作的一件多彩玻璃马赛克壁画照相。

"I think it's nice when you see these kinds of things that catch your eye when you're walking in spaces like the subway stations that seem a little bit dull. They don't have a lot of decoration."

“走在有点昏暗、乏味的地铁站，看到这些各色各样的图画，感觉非常不错。这些艺术品没有很多的装饰。”

The new Fulton Center train station connects nine major subway lines. A massive work by James Carpenter sits atop the center. Sandra Bloodworth calls it the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's "crowning piece of art."

“新建的福尔顿中心车站连接九条主要的地铁线路。詹姆斯·卡朋特创作的大型作品坐落在福尔顿中心。桑德拉·布鲁德沃斯称之为大都会交通总署‘最完美的艺术’。”

"Together they've created this work of art that brings light into the station. As Jamie Carpenter says, the sky is folded onto the sky reflector and down onto the people as they travel through the station."

“他们设计的这件作品将灯光引入车站内。正如詹姆斯·卡朋特所说，人们穿过车站时可是看到天空折射反应的景象。”

Even on cloudy winter days, the piece brings life into the dark passages. The same could be said, in fact, about all the works in New York's underground art museum.

即使在多风的冬天，这件作品能够将生机和活力带入黑暗的通道。事实上，可以说纽约地下所有的艺术都可以称作是艺术博物馆。

I'm Caty Weaver.

我是凯蒂·威弗尔。

This report was based on a story from VOA's Carolyn Weaver. Caty Weaver wrote it for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

subway – n. a system of underground trains in a city

ceiling – n. the inside surface at the top of a room

chandelier – n. a large, decorated light that hangs from a ceiling and has branches for holding many light bulbs or candles

mural – n. a usually large painting that is done directly on the surface of a wall

scene – n. a view or sight that looks like a picture

mosaic – n. a decoration on a surface made by pressing small pieces of colored glass or stone into a soft material that then hardens to make pictures or patterns

Is there public art in your city? Do you think public art is valuable? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below.

New York's 'Underground Museum' Pleases Passerby

In NYC’s Underground Art Museum, Works to Delight the Passerby

Millions of New Yorkers and visitors ride the city's subway and other trains each day. The public transportation system offers more than just a trip, however. It also has one of the most extensive public art collections in the world, with much of it under city streets.

Some people call it New York's "underground art museum." It includes more than 250 works of art. They are meant to brighten everyone's ride around the city.

There is the huge painting of the night sky on the ceiling of Grand Central Terminal. New Yorkers have been looking up at that artwork for 100 years.

In the nearby Grand Central Market, you can find a large, crystal light fixture. The ice-like stones hang on the chandelier's many branches, making the piece look like an upside-down olive tree. Sculptor Donald Lipski completed the work in 1988.

Other artists include new ones and the long-famous: Roy Lichtenstein's pop art porcelain enamel mural is found at Times Square. Sol Lewitt's intensely colored "Whirls and Twirls" is at Columbus Circle.

Sandra Bloodworth has directed the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's arts program since it began in 1985.

"But actually, it really began much earlier. When the subway was founded in 1904, a percentage, if you will, of money was set aside to create a special ornamentation within the system, in order to make the place this very special place that people would want to use."

For the past 30 years, artists have been asked to make works that relate to city life or to the neighborhood around a train station. There are coastal scenes at stations near the Atlantic Ocean. Native plants and flowers can be found in a garden scene in Brooklyn.

Wildlife mosaics greet visitors arriving at the subway station next to the American Museum of Natural History. Sculptor Tom Otterness created the small, rounded, metal creatures that populate another station.

At Times Square, Jane Dickson's mosaics of "The Revelers," suggest New Year's Eve celebrants. Rider Tonya Pierre praises the underground art.

"When I'm stressed, I look at the subway art. I love the colors. Where I live, they have a mosaic of a man and a woman, like, floating across the water, and it's beautiful. It's just beautiful to have art everywhere."

Nearby is Alejandra Acosta, a visitor from Colombia. She stopped to take a picture of a colorful glass mosaic mural by the former artist Jacob Lawrence.

"I think it's nice when you see these kinds of things that catch your eye when you're walking in spaces like the subway stations that seem a little bit dull. They don't have a lot of decoration."

The new Fulton Center train station connects nine major subway lines. A massive work by James Carpenter sits atop the center. Sandra Bloodworth calls it the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's "crowning piece of art."

"Together they've created this work of art that brings light into the station. As Jamie Carpenter says, the sky is folded onto the sky reflector and down onto the people as they travel through the station."

Even on cloudy winter days, the piece brings life into the dark passages. The same could be said, in fact, about all the works in New York's underground art museum.

I'm Caty Weaver.

This report was based on a story from VOA's Carolyn Weaver. Caty Weaver wrote it for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

subway – n. a system of underground trains in a city

ceiling – n. the inside surface at the top of a room

chandelier – n. a large, decorated light that hangs from a ceiling and has branches for holding many light bulbs or candles

mural – n. a usually large painting that is done directly on the surface of a wall

scene – n. a view or sight that looks like a picture

mosaic – n. a decoration on a surface made by pressing small pieces of colored glass or stone into a soft material that then hardens to make pictures or patterns

Is there public art in your city? Do you think public art is valuable? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below.