Data Vandals turns facts about NYC into art and conversation in an abandoned subway kiosk
Photo credit: Mark Shaw
Some New Yorkers have complained that they miss the old subway platform kiosks that were recently replaced by vending machines, seeing the change as a sign that human interaction is becoming a thing of the past. Data Vandals has an even better idea: As part of the MTA’s Vacant Unit Activation Program, the artist-activists created the Data Vandals Newsstand, a data-art gallery on the downtown 6-train platform at 51st Street and Lexington Avenue. A colorful mural outside the former kiosk reveals New York’s history in fascinating detail for the 52,000 riders that pass through the station daily. Creative visualization of vital data includes the country of origin for each of the city’s 8.8 million residents anchored by a freshly updated Statue of Liberty and a six-foot-tall rat mascot offering facts about the 6-train stops. Inside, the kiosk turns into a center for community conversation, with rotating surveys, changing exhibitions, in-person events, talks, music, and a free newspaper.
The kiosk is open every Sunday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. (or “by appointment or happy accident”). You can find an event calendar here. The newsstand can also be booked for private events. Some of the things you’ll find at the newsstand:
- A synoptic timeline of 400 years of Midtown Manhattan history, organized by themes including culture, business, entertainment, architecture, and crime.
- Ratsy, a six-foot-tall rat mascot offering facts about the 6-train stops.
- The Door, offering station facts, the history of 51st Street, busiest hours of the day, and hours of operation.
- 8.8 million New Yorkers, a data visualization of the country of origin for every person in the city, anchored by an updated Statue of Liberty.
The Data Vandals Newsstand was created as a template for civic data engagement throughout the MTA system, with plans for more subterranean civic galleries in underused spaces throughout the city.
Partnerships with NYC Open Data Week, local schools, and station-area businesses will help further plans to bring New Yorkers closer one platform at a time. Data Vandals will also be participating in an Archtober Takeover in October.
As the collaboration of multidisciplinary artist Jen Ray and data visualization expert Jason Forrest, Data Vandals transforms abstract data into participatory public art experiences in order to invite curiosity, create conversations, and turn everyday places into laboratories for collective understanding.
Since 2021, they’ve been on a mission to bring data out of the digital world and onto the streets, believing that meaningful change happens when art meets community.
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