Client: MTA Arts in Transit
Architect: MTA New York City Transit
Photo credits: Sophia Little
Technique: Airbrushed enamels on laminated safety glass.
DESCRIPTION: Radiant Memories, James Little‘s vibrant laminated glass artwork at the LIRR Jamaica station, incorporates layers of colorful, intricate lines that together form flat gradated blocks of color, creating a sense of movement and animation as the light shifts throughout the day. Radiant Memories is the largest MTA Arts & Design installation on Long Island, consisting of 33 laminated glass panels within the enclosure that connects the new Brooklyn bound platform with the JFK AirTrain, central LIRR passage and a portal bridge at the west end of the platform.
The installation brings a fresh aesthetic to the station, and provides an immediate wayfinding signal to Brooklyn-bound commuters as they navigate their transfers. James Little is a well-established abstract painter based in New York City. He is a meticulous craftsman, who creates his own colors with pure pigment and heated beeswax and layers each hue multiple times in parallel bands on the canvas. This technique gives his paintings a formal structure, depth of color and a vibrant energy. Glasmalerei Peters Studios translated Little‘s paintings into large laminated glass panels by using hand cut stencils and applying multiple layers of airbrushed and hand painted colored enamels and silver stains.
After being commissioned by the Metropolitan Transit Authority and the Long Island Railroad for a glass installation at the new platform at Jamaica Station in New York, l had to find a fabricator for my proposal. After consulting with eight or more art/ glass companies, l chose Peters Glass. Having more than a century of combined experience in stained glass production and restoration and in contemporary art glass fabrication and installation, choosing Peters Glass was the best decision l made. They provided me with highly experienced project managers, "laser focused "graphic designers, artists, technicians and assistants that were able to interpret and translate my proposal, offering new approaches and innovative techniques. Providing "state of the art" equipment help make the project a total success that exceeded my own expectations.It was a revelatory experience for me that l will never forget. In my opinion, Peters Glass is the best art-glass company on the planet!
- James Little, Artist