Public Art staff rode the rails yesterday, taking Sound Transit Link Light Rail from Pioneer Square to Tukwila, and working our way back station by station. The artwork is varied and abundant, the landscaping thoughtful, and each station is unique. The journey was smooth, and surprised us with the pleasures of unexpected elevations and views into parts of the County we don’t usually see.
At Tukwila, the current end of the line, Tad Savinar’s A Drop of Sustenance, a giant droplet and its splash, was playfully impressive in person. Plaza soundscape by Clark Wiegman, captured from a stormwater vault below and emanating from steel sculptures that suggest abstracted musical instruments is a delight. The Othello station is the most seamlessly integrated into its neighborhood and site; carved, sculptural rain drains by Brian Goldbloom are in harmony with the station and its surrounding businesses. Roger Shimomura’s sculpture, Rainier Valley Haiku, has the most uncluttered plaza on the line, allowing the viewer to access all sides of the work and study the stacked objects that represent the immigrant experience. Buster Simpson’s Parable, a steel and enamel artwork at Rainier Beach station, suffers from the proximity to nearby bike lockers and newspaper stands that appear to have been plopped down without consideration for the space or the artwork. The setting compromises the impact of a formally beautiful artwork.
Elsewhere, an embarrassment of riches makes for a feeling of clutter. Colombia City station platform artwork by Gale McCall is spare and elegant, but the proximity of Norie Sato’s sculptural lions to Juan Alonso’s power station window treatment in the adjacent plaza robs both artists’ visual stories of some of their power. Victoria Fuller’s monumental bronze shovel with botanical relief gets the scale just right but crowds the station.
McCall’s baskets at Columbia City, Dan Corson’s motion-activated bridge railing in Tukwila, and Sheila Klein’s painted ceiling and chandelier installation at Mount Baker station are deserving of a return trip after dark, when light will play an important role in animating the artwork. Klein’s task of impacting the cavernous first floor of the station was daunting. Kiosks within the space offer a fascinating history of the Olmstead brothers’ impact on the region but do not honor the gesture of the artwork above and its intentions for the space. At Beacon Hill station, Carl Smool’s folk art inflected, kinetic flags and pavement inlay compliment the bamboo and reed landscaping in the plaza. In the station below, Dan Corson’s installation is colorful and theatrical. An interactive wall of video and glass engaged a host of visitors while we were there and reinforced the impression of an aquarium or science center exhibit.
Take the time to tour the line yourselves – we’d love to hear what you think. Many factors influence the placement of artwork in the public realm, including practicality, law and politics. We applaud Sound Transit’s program and dedication to creating significant public artwork in the region.
Clark Wiegman, Soundings © 2009; Buster Simpson, Parable © 2009 Ronnie Stern; Sheila Klein, Sky Within © 2009
