Grand Central Escalator by Amy Lyne

Public Project

Grand Central Escalator

Copyright Amy Lyne 2025

Date of Work May 2014 - Ongoing

Updated Feb 2017

Location Grand Central Terminal, New York

Topics America, Black and White, Candid, commute, Documentary, escalator, Photography, Photojournalism, public transportation, train station, Travel, Youth

This escalator series is from In Transit, an ongoing project I have been shooting mostly at Grand Central Terminal in New York City. The station is wonderful: a constant hustle and bustle, plenty to see and observe, all the while being able to disappear into oblivion. There, it doesn't matter if I, camera in hand, stop, stare, pace back and forth or walk in circles. Everybody at Grand Central is doing just that, as they wait for their train or try to find one. The station is an iconic landmark so many are simply there to admire the station. As with most tourist traps, no one is shocked or intimidated by the camera, as everyone has one! The past, present and future all seem to converge at Grand Central. There is a constant flux of people- just when you think there is nothing left to see, you find there is.

I honed in on the escalator at Grand Central, where people stood still, while (ironically) in motion. It was the one place in the station where the cacophony of movement streamed into one line. Here, people stared into space, disengaged, while others acknowledged me, even performed for me. Then they were gone"¦

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Amy Lyne

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