Moving Stories

(Photo courtesy David Dust)

The most unsung, occasionally unslung, form of mass transportation. The escalator. New York has some very fine ones and some very crappy ones. The subway escalator at 53rd and Lexington (left) was reputed to be the longest in the world when it opened in 1933. Moscow also has some impressive ones. Check out post on Weburbanist  blog.

The English word "escalator" is very economical, while other languages--Spanish, Italian, Polish, Romanian--maintain the kinetic imagery of the "moving stairways," archaic in English.

Note: he is standing on the right

My favorite escalator performance art piece by the  Czech artist Jirí Kovanda. It's part of a series of very minor happenings he created in Prague in 1977, including one in which he suddenly begins to run very fast. More about Kovanda's work here.

Your correspondent now resumes his study of South American infrastructure and vinoculture. Happy 4th!