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Description:
The
Transit Shelter features a lively fusion of shapes and textures and
consists of one large canopy shelter which resides on two center
columns of a quarter-inch steel plate, gracefully tapering up to the
paired 2-feet by 4-feet steel tubes which are bent into a smooth and
gentle arc. The canopy consists of five perforated, triangular steel
panels which provide protection from the sun while concrete and
custom tile unite to create three individual bench seats. Two
leaning rails provide additional support for those needing to rest
against it or when seating benches are occupied.
Tempe’s goal with its Artist Designed Transit Shelters is to
encourage people to use the public transportation by making it
attractive, innovative and functional.
Funding:
The project was funded through city of Tempe Capital Improvement
Project Percent for Art funds with additional funding from the
Arizona Commission on the Arts and the Federal Transit
Administration.
Artist biography:
Virginia
Senior received her degree in architecture from Arizona State
University in 1985. Since then, she has worked in architectural
firms in Los Angeles and Boston. In 1992 she relocated to Phoenix to
form the award-wining Senior/Oesterle Artchitecture + Art
with partners Jeff Oesterle and Rebecca Senior. Virginia Senior has
a solid architectural foundation in the public sector, especially in
the areas of transportation and housing. Completed projects include
Dudley Station, Transitway South Station and Jamaica Plain Housing.
Virginia Senior is the daughter of a silversmith and excels within
many artistic disciplines including: architecture, furniture design,
sculpture, jewelry and graphic design.
Artist statement:
In thinking about what a transit shelter
represents, that is exactly what is called for: a beacon, an
obelisk, a marker that calls itself out. A bus stop serves as a
destination and a departure point simultaneously. Traffic whizzes
by, allowing only the briefest glance from the motorist. Art at 45
(miles per hour) requires simple forms understandable in a blink.
But for the transit rider, it must also hold interest on a closer
inspection. We chose to pick up on Tempe’s wave of modernism as
opposed to historicism. Throughout the transit shelter we have used
clean, simple forms. On our own artistic level, simple forms used
repetitively is a satisfying direction to explore. Simple does not
mean boring, rather every piece has a purpose and each is integral
to creating the whole design. |
