Project Description

Peter Reiquam specializes in the design and fabrication of public furnishings that are both fun and utilitarian. Reiquam has created a sleek series of four subway ‘sofas’ for the Civic Center Station platform. The benches have been constructed from a carefully considered system of durable granite slabs that relate to the station’s formal geometry. The composition of each bench provides an air of comfortable domesticity with a configuration that encourages commuters to converse with one another. The highly polished granite surface provides a pleasurable smoothness that reflects a sophisticated palette of carnelian red, sage green and jet black arranged in colorful juxtaposition.

Artist Statement

“I have designed the benches in a modular style that relates to the formal grid of the paving tiles and the overall symmetry of the station. The pieces are sculptural and contemporary and suggest a stylized version of domestic furniture. The polished surface exposes the intricacy of the stone’s interior.”

About the Artist

PETER REIQUAM is a Seattle based artist who obtained his Master of Fine Arts from the Yale School of Art. He has exhibited extensively throughout the United States and has completed numerous public art commissions for the King County Arts Commission and the Washington State Arts Commission including projects at the King County International Airport and the Meany Hall for Performing Arts, Seattle. He was the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Visual Artist Fellowship in 1986.