The Takeaway
The sculptures by Harris make one stop, think, and reconsider their relationship to the city. They make one reconsider what grand-scale machinery, like the subway, can propel and its impact on city life. They serve as reminders that things are not always as expected, and that opening one’s eyes can reveal the unexpected in the least likely of places. While each person will take away something different, the sculptures create something akin to an inside joke effect – the giggle or grin is a result of understanding the cleverness of harnessing the subway vent air. The observer is drawn in by the juxtaposition of a zoo animal on a city block, and also recognizes the subway machinery as the power source for the sculptures.
The understanding of the subway machinery as the power source brings the inner workings of the city into the mind of the observer, likening the subway to the lungs of a man. Thus, with lungs, the city can be viewed as a body - a body to which observers can feel a connection. Also, as a result of their placement on the street, the sculptures act to induce a dérive state or encounter to passersby. In these ways, the sculptures bring people together to reconsider their expectations of the city and their understanding of its integration with machines. They way the observer experiences and views the city is changed.
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