Underground Art

November 2, 2010

A large-scale exhibition has been mounted, illegally, under the streets of New York City in an old, unfinished subway station. Anyone who is caught defacing MTA property (perhaps by painting over it), is subject to arrest and to fines. Merely to visit the exhibition space, one must illegally trespass through MTA property.

Those who participate in the project or visit the site risk not only breaking the law, but also risk their breaking their necks. The abandoned subway station is far more dangerous than any Chelsea gallery. Accordingly, one artist says, “We’re not under the illusion that no one will ever see it. But what we are trying to do is to discourage it as much as possible.”

Read more about one reporter’s tour of the site here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/01/arts/design/01underbelly.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

Explore it yourself here: http://theunderbellyproject.com/