Already, Washington, D.C.’s Metro system has its own unique beauty. The concrete walls’ curves sweep over commuters with a visual appeal often atypical for Brutalism. Since 1997, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) has focused on beautifying the stations even further through Art in Transit.
This program hopes to improve the ridership experience by providing a location for artworks, including murals, mosaics, and sculptures. Art in Transit was inspired by a one-year exhibit in 1988 that a group of public art advocates put together after approaching the WMATA Board of Directors.
Installing artworks in transit lines isn’t anything new. In St. Louis, Missouri, the Metro Arts in Transit project has installed over 150 artworks throughout the city’s Metro since 1986. In New York, there are a variety of show-stopping tile artworks in their subway system. Even in Paris, the beauty of the city’s subway system is something to take notice of, thanks to Art Nouveau glass canopies, frescoes, and decorative tiles.
For a full list of which Metro stations in Washington, D.C. feature artworks, be sure to check out the WMATA website here. If interested in discovering the city’s most beautiful artworks on the Metro line, be sure to browse through the below map, featuring everything from a 900-foot-long mural at the NoMa-Gallaudet Metro station to a glass and stone mosaic frieze at the New Carrollton Metro station.
Note: The mapped points have been listed geographically, from the most north to the most south.
Read More