| This thesis explores public art and its reception in subway stations based on a case study of commissioned art projects in the five subway stations of the Toronto Transit Commission Sheppard Line. Through the application of various theoretical models such as Ronald Lee Fleming's concepts of "placemaking" and Georg Simmel's account of viewing and modernity, I argue that the contemplative gaze and disengaged glance are not two separate forms of reception, but are more closely related than generally perceived. Art that exists in subway stations provides an ideal case study for this consideration because it is a site where viewers are in transit. The resulting viewing experience---alternating between the gaze and the glance---reveals insights not only about reception in "transitional spaces" such as subway stations, but many other modern experiences as well. The integrated approach to public art taken by artists and the TTC for the Sheppard Line encourages this type of transitory viewing experience, which is variably attentive, fleeting, and grounded in the meaning of place. |
