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| Re: Archer Avenue at 20 (717948) | |||
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Re: Archer Avenue at 20 |
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Posted by Qveensboro_Plaza on Wed Dec 10 11:43:02 2008, in response to Re: Archer Avenue at 20, posted by RonInBayside on Wed Dec 10 10:41:07 2008. The design of the 63rd Street and Archer Avenue stations was an attempt, however misguided, to bring a sense of spaciousness into the subway, and they are true 'period pieces,' reflecting the design trends of the 1960s as much as the original IRT reflected design trends of the early 1900s.I think the unfortunate trend toward orange glazed tiles began with the late-1960s renovation of the BMT 49th Street station, which as I recall, was funded largely with Federal dollars as a demonstration project. In addition to the new wall treatment, the station was equipped with acoustical blocks and panels to reduce noise, a good idea that was not widely adopted throughout the system At the time the color was a startling change from the original white tile motif and was much more interesting than beige or green block tiles that the TA had been using in new/renovated/extended stations since the 50s. The people making design decisions for the TA/MTA seemed to have all said, "Oooh, Color!" and so orange and brown apparently became the new standard. This was also the time when station columns began to be repainted in bright colors rather than the standard dark green or black. Shortly after the 49th Street renovation, the orange and brown tile motifs appeared again in the partial renovation of 42nd Street/Sixth Avenue and the newly-built connection to the 7 line. This work has since been removed and replaced with the classic white tiles. Around the same time, Bowling Green was renovated with similar orange wall tiles. The idea to give most of the new stations high ceilings meant minimizing their mezzanine space, which was a big mistake that has made circulation such a problem. I am sure the thinking was influenced at the time by the planned design of the Washington Metro and the BART system, without considering New York's much higher passenger loads. If the Second Ave Subway had been built in the 70s as planned, we would likely be seeing orange up and down the East Side too. While I don't love the color scheme of the Archer or 63rd Street stations, I can appreciate them examples of mid-century design. And if they were merely maintained properly, they would not be the eyesores they have become. |
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