Everyone Appreciates a Punctual Train

Life-size bronze birds populate the rafters of an existing light rail station, intently watching clocks that never move.

When I got this commission to create a piece for an existing light rail station on the outskirts of St. Louis, I had never been to the city. Since I couldn’t very well create a piece that said anything honest or real about a place i had never visited, I decided to focus on an experience I did share with the people at the train station: the way time seems to stand still when you’re waiting for a train. As I sat at the station enjoying the grass and trees surrounding the platform, I started thinking about how differently I experience time compared to the birds and squirrels that inhabit the space around the station. As I sat, watching the seconds tick by, these creatures were living parallel lives completely untied from mechanical time. 

Serendipity often adds to the meaning of artworks. Just before I installed this piece, I squirrel interrupted a World Series game in St Louis, and became a local celebrity. The bronze squirrel in the piece, placed next to a cardinal, meant more to the locals than I had intended.

Date: 2012
Location: Wellston Light Rail Station, St. Louis, MO
Commissioning Agency: St. Louis Metro
Project Manager: David Allen
Details: Bronze sculptures, 4 in to 18 in long.
Stainless steel base, 30 in x 18 in x 18 in.
Sculpting Assistant: Keith Laber
Bronze Casting: Bollinger Atelier
Base fabrication and installation: Troco