Creeping on Where Time Has Been, 2023

Stainless Steel & laminated glass. Fabricated by Ferra Designs and Mayer of Munich.

Commissioned by MTA Arts & Design

Creeping On Where Time Has Been is an appreciation of the borough’s historical architecture and includes imagery of notable structures such as the Vanderbilt Mausoleum and New Dorp Beach bungalows. I drew ideas from my research of the station area with the Historic Richmond Town Archive and New York Transit Museum Archive, as well as firsthand accounts from my mother who grew up in New Dorp. I went to high school near the station and currently reside nearby. My inspiration stems from the relationship between New Dorp's natural landscapes and architectural history in the neighborhood over the years. I wanted to create a work that draws attention to Staten Island’s rich history and give riders something beautiful and interesting to look at each day. The artwork title, a line from the poem The Ivy Green by Charles Dickens, is an allusion to the ivy motif that symbolizes the persistence of time and nature’s substantial presence on Staten Island despite manmade developments. Nine cut metal panels line the walkway to the new elevator on the Tottenville-bound side of the station and features blue, yellow, and red glass squares lining the top and bottom of the panels. The colorful border is also seen on the laminated glass panels of the station porticoes and references the stained glass of the original 1889 station house, which was relocated to Historic Richmond Town in 1965. In the metal design, the ivy motif is a backdrop to stylized beach bungalows alluding to New Dorp’s past as a turn-of- the-twentieth-century beach resort destination. The bungalow representations are based on on historic buildings such as the Lang's Hotel, the Elm Tree Lighthouse, the Munger on the Beach Hotel, and the Cedar Grove Clubhouse. The St. George-bound side of the station portico features a towering rooster in a nod to the farmland that once stretched across the neighborhood and acts as a greeter for morning commuters. The rooster stands over Britton Cottage, originally on New Dorp Lane, which was home to famous botanist Nathanial Lord Britton, founder of the New York Botanical Garden. It is one of the oldest structures on Staten Island and was also moved to Historic Richmond town. On the Tottenville-bound side is a serene evening scene for commuters returning home. A deer, common on Staten Island, stands over an illustration of the Vanderbilt Mausoleum located in nearby Moravian Cemetery. Cornelius Vanderbilt owned the New York Central Railroad and one of the first ferry services from Staten Island to Manhattan, indelible contributions to the daily commute of Staten Islanders.