Travelers to and from Philadelphia by train are about to come face to face with an entirely new experience courtesy of the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, a Knight Arts grantee. Starting just this week, seven huge stretches of Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor are being transformed into a bright installation by Berlin-based artist Katharina Grosse.

Katharina Grosse logo.

For a project with bold colors and the ability to change with movement and time, the recently released title “psychylustro” resonates in both the vivid palette of lustrous hues and the way in which it manifests – inside the mind of the viewers. As the train hurtles along, the images will change like a large scale, fast-paced film, turning the stationary murals into a rapidly changing montage sure to brighten any commute.

Katharina Grosse, “In Seven Days Time.”

Conceived as a temporary installation, the areas around the heavily used transit line will surely be subject to the wear and tear of constant movement as well as general urban decay. This erosion will act as a second way that the otherwise static images will be altered over time, as the elements slowly reclaim the space.

Grosse maintains that she wants to stir up a life experience and heighten the sense of presence of through the colors she uses, and also emphasizes how her works can, in a way, exist on multiple scales at once. “The work shifts your notion of size through movement,” the artist explains. “When you stand in front of it, it’s huge, but when you pass it by on the train, it becomes small.”

A site map of “psychylustro” locations along Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor.

Utilizing Grosse’s unique spray-painting technique, the artist and her team will spread intense colors across the chosen display sites through the middle of May, when “psychylustro” is expected to reach completion. On Sunday, May 18 at 2 p.m., there will be a conversation with the artist along with Carlos Basualdo, The Keith and Kathy Sachs Senior Curator of Contemporary Art. The discussion will take place at the Philadelphia Museum of Art Van Pelt Auditorium. It is free and open to the public, although a service charge applies for ticket reservation ($2.50 museum members/$3.50 non-members). Registration required by calling 215-235-SHOW(7469) or visiting philamuseum.org.

The City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program is located at Thomas Eakins House, 1727-29 Mt. Vernon St., Philadelphia; [email protected]; muralarts.org.