24th St and Washington-Jefferson

Kevin Berry / Phoenix, AZ

Local artist Kevin Berry has designed two large shade structures for each station platform of sand-cast bronze composition. The artwork panels located on the east ends of the two stations depict imagery that interprets the site’s early history and transformation; its proximity to the Salt River and its ties to farming and irrigation are captured through the image of a stream irrigating the furrowed earth of a farm field. A rising sun is represented in the form of an arrangement of mechanical gears and bearings, emerges from behind a mountain-range horizon and recognizes the industrial transformation of the area, serving as a metaphor for the passage of time.

The artwork panels located at the west ends of the stations offer an interpretation of the current landscape and horizon to the west. The composition includes a mechanical sun setting in the western sky, representing the passage of time and the fading of the industrial era. Illuminated by the setting sun and rising moon are a cellular communications tower and a view of downtown skyscrapers mixed with houses, symbolizing the technology and the city’s growing urban environment.

Created by Pacific Northwest artists Stuart Keeler and Michael Machnic, the artwork at this station is an astronomical tool that notes the passage of time, utilizing the changing path of the Phoenix sun. The wing forms, inspired by the nearby airport and aerospace industry, are organized linearly from east to west along the southern edge of the entry ramp. Within each form is a circular cut-out through which the sun illuminates a metal disc at exactly noon on the 21st day of each month.

Influenced by the nearby Pueblo Grande Museum, the piece reflects the Hohokam celebration of seasonal shifts with ceremonies using the sun. At the same time, the interdisciplinary fields of astronomy, mathematics and history are in keeping with the station’s relationship to neighboring Gateway Community College.