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PEOPLE & ARTS Thursday 29 december 2016
New subway station has public art

rarely seen: A gay couple

DEEPTI HAJELA gram in visual culture stud- and skinny,” Kellogg said,
ULA ILNYTZKY ies at SUNY Buffalo and the as Stockman added, “That
Associated Press former executive coordina- they were just average-
NEW YORK (AP) — The sight tor of the Larry Kramer Ini- looking guys like us.”
of two men holding hands tiative for Lesbian and Gay Muniz’s work at the 72nd
is far from uncommon, but Studies at Yale University. Street station is joined by
a mural of two men doing “What makes it a turn- three other artists, one at
just that is showing up in ing point is it isn’t gayness each of three other stations
an unusual place — on the singled out and made the on the subway line. Every
walls of a new subway sta- theme. On the contrary, artist who submitted a pro-
tion in New York City. the work naturalizes gay- posal to be considered for
That depiction of love be- ness within the fabric of the project came forward
tween gay men is a rarity in the city, and in so doing, with their own idea, not
public art, experts say. that’s actually an even one based on any kind of
“It was like winning the lot- more powerful message,” theme or idea from the
tery,” Thor Stockman, 60, he said. Metropolitan Transporta-
said of finding out that he Nicholas Baume, pub- tion Authority’s Arts and
and his husband of 3 ½ lic art fund director and Design public art program,
years, Patrick Kellogg, were chief curator, agreed. “The said Sandra Bloodworth, This Nov. 29, 2016 photo provided by the New York Metropoli-
going to be part of artist Vik work reminds me that it’s the director. tan Transportation Authority shows a mural by Vik Muniz on the
Muniz’s “Perfect Strangers,” a common occurrence to Finalists then presented wall of the Second Avenue subway station at 72nd Street in New
a series of life-size mosaic see a gay couple holding their ultimate concepts, York. The subjects are Thor Stockman, left, and his husband, Pat-
portraits of everyday New hands waiting on a sub- and the winning artist was rick Kellogg.
Yorkers gracing the walls way platform in New York selected. q Associated Press
of the new subway station City. It’s great that it’s no
at 72nd Street. But “part of longer a taboo for men
me wishes that it wasn’t a to show this kind of every-
rarity, that it wasn’t remark- day affection.” Stockman
able.” and Kellogg said they took
The station on the city’s the photo that is the basis
long-awaited Second Av- for the mosaic by chance
enue subway line is sched- more than three years ago;
uled to open Jan. 1. they had gone to Brooklyn
Muniz said it made sense to meet up with a friend
to include the two men who was working on the
in a project intended to project, and a photogra-
show the different people pher asked if they want-
that riders are likely to en- ed to be photographed.
counter on their daily com- Stockman assumed plenty
mutes. of people were being pho-
“They are just people you tographed, and “we were
would expect to see,” Mu- hoping maybe we’ll get a
niz, who divides his time be- nice portrait print out of this
tween New York and Bra- by standing there for five
zil, said in phone interview minutes.”
from Rio de Janeiro. “You It wasn’t until earlier this
would expect to see men year that they were told
holding hands.” their image would be
Jonathan David Katz, an among those going up in
expert in queer art history, the new station, and they
said he could find no other were asked to keep it un-
example of a permanent, der wraps as the specif-
non-political LGBTQ public ics of the art installations
artwork in New York City. hadn’t gone public yet.
He mentioned George Se- When they were finally
gal’s “Gay Liberation Mon- able to tell their friends, the
ument” near Stonewall Inn, reaction was joyous, said
the site of the 1969 riots that Kellogg, 47, and not only
launched the gay rights for the two of them but be-
movement. But that work, cause it was the kind of im-
featuring two men stand- age of a gay couple that’s
ing and two women sitting, not often seen in pop cul-
is expressly commemora- ture.
tive of a political moment. “Our friends were happy
A work like Muniz’s is long that this is gay representa-
overdue in a city “ostensi- tion on the walls of New
bly the epicenter of both York City, but our friends
the art world and the gay were even happier that this
movement,” said Katz, di- is gay representation that
rector of the doctoral pro- is not incredibly beautiful