Dickson's 'Revelers' Bring the Party Underground

“The Revelers” by Jane Dickson

Fine Arts Professor Jane Dickson’s “The Revelers” mosaics in the Times Square subway station were unveiled in May and have been creating quite a buzz.

Her “party people” were featured in Harvard Magazine, ARTnews, Pace University’s Annual Report, the Japanese language and English language editions of AM New York, on Tokyo FM, and on Japanese television.

Dickson’s husband, Charlie Ahearn, who is also a Pace professor, has completed a short video documentary on the making of these mosaics which they hope will be aired on US television this year.

“We hope to continue this collaborative photo project and develop it into a book in the coming year,” said Dickson.

Dickson proposed the project to the MTA in 2003, and began design in 2005. The MTA threw an unveiling ceremony in May which was filmed by Korean TV and documented in still photos, which can be seen at http://www.flickr.com/photos/therevelers.

It was not the first time Dickson created art in this part of the city. She has lived or worked in Times Square since 1978. In 1981 she organized the Public Art Fund’s billboard project at 1 Times Square. In the 90s, she created a poster for the same subway station as part of an MTA public art project. She had also painted New Year’s Eve revelers previously.

Following the completion of her mosaics, Dickson was chosen to serve on the MTA advisory panel which recently selected the artist for the new Yankee Stadium subway and train station.