Hidden Masterpieces of the NYC Subway | Hacker News Reader

Hidden Masterpieces of the NYC Subway

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95 pointspresspot19 comments

Tom Otterness, who made all the bronze sculptures in the 14th street & 8th ave station, first rose to fame with a performance art piece he did where he video taped himself adopting a dog and then shooting it in the head.

If you think the way that startups market themselves is sometimes questionably ethical, in other industries it's apparently even crazier.

Reminds me of the performance artist Chris Burden who in 1971 had a friend shoot him in the arm with a .22 rifle. But at least he had the guts to have himself shot vs. a dog.

In Docklands, Melbourne, there's a public sculpture that any normal child would think is a fun thing to climb (https://markstoner.com.au/projects/the-river-runs-through-it...). Naturally there are signs instructing parents to prevent their children from climbing the "sculptures"!

All part of the long process of contemporary art becoming increasingly irrelevant to the public: https://www.commentarymagazine.com/articles/how-art-became-i...

I doubt he really did it for to 'market himself' and as that, it's been spectacularly unsuccessful - the movie was forgotten until brought up relatively recently and then ended up costing him commissions, reputation, etc.

Did animal cruelty laws not exist in the 70s?

I'm pretty sure euthanizing a dog by gunshot (if done properly) has never legally been considered animal cruelty. It's very common in rural areas.

There's something mildy shocking about the whole affair, especially the contrast with first adopting the dog, but I suspect that's the "art" bit.

> I'm pretty sure euthanizing a dog by gunshot ... has never legally been considered animal cruelty.

I'm horrified that anyone would think this is true. In case anyone reads this and doesn't know better, shooting an animal is only allowed when justified, typically in self-defense.

Shooting a terminally ill dog is not sufficient justification either [1].

[1] - http://www.wfla.com/national/heartbroken-pet-owner-faces-jai...

>Shooting a terminally ill dog is not sufficient justification either

Those charges were dropped, as there is no West Virginia law outlawing shooting for euthanasia.

http://www.13newsnow.com/article/news/local/va-beach-man-who...

To my knowledge it is not illegal to euthanize an animal by gunshot in any US state.

From a practical standpoint, it's probably the most humane way to do it. There's far less pain and emotional distress (for the animal) involved than in any other means I can think of, including having a licensed vet come to your home and put the animal down via injection.

It's also significantly less expensive than any other means which is an important consideration for much of the country. Hiring a vet to come out to your home to euthanize an animal can be hundreds of dollars - it was $350-$500 in Virginia when we checked in to it there. A .22 LR round is ~$.10, and a well-placed round to the base of the brain is instant.

There are downsides, of course. It requires knowledge of anatomy, and it can be bungled badly. Cats, like many animals, are prone to spasming when the CNS is destroyed, which is certainly not something that I'd want my kids to see.

All in all, I'd much prefer to either have a vet come out or obtain the necessary injections to do it myself at home - but I have financial resources at my disposal than the vast majority of families in my area do not. Given the choice between waiting for a dog or a cat to die of a long, painful disorder and their owner euthanizing them with a firearm, the latter is much preferable.

I definitely thought this was going to be about graffiti.

Same here, certain this was about graffiti

Or at least something similar to Moscow Metro by scale: https://www.cnn.com/style/article/moscow-metro-stations-davi...

That book would be an awesome source for a scavenger hunt.

Is there a specific reason old public works projects used to be a lot more elaborate aesthetically versus the "lowest bidder" approach they take today?

In NY a lot of the public works from 1930-1960 was driven by Robert Moses, starting with his Jones beach projects.

The Power Broker would be my recommended reading.

On the surface, yes -- but Moses (for whatever reason) hated the subways, and was to some extent responsible for the neglect that made the system a wreck by the late '70s. (For those who have complaints about the way things are now, it was worse.)

In any case, a lot of the subway art described here was from before the '30s -- many of the stations described are part of the original IRT line, which opened 1904.

According to The Power Broker, Moses liked grand visions and held poor people in contempt, because he thought he knew what was good for them.

Rehabilitating the subway is not a new, grand project. It also would‘ve primarily benefitted the poor people in a way contrary to his visions. Finally, it would‘ve competed for federal money with his precious highway projects since the federal government would be reluctant to allocate too much money to one region. So the subway had all the things going against it, in Moses‘ opinion.

If it was in the years between the Great Depression and World War 2, the Works Progress Administration that was part of the New Deal put people to work in building public works and art and teaching art, among other things. http://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2018/01/16/wpa-us-infrastruct...

The first reason is that contemporary trends in architecture tend to favor more utilitarian designs.

The second reason is that public projects have a real problem trying to control labor costs during projects. The most artistic and aesthetically pleasing works of craftsman ship taking time and money public projects can't support right now.

Labor was cheap and expendable.

In NY, every minute you allow an employee near a ladder costs you money due to Workers Compensation costs.

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