These Artists Will Repaint Uptown 191st Street Tunnel

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — A selection of artists have been chosen to repaint the 191st 1 train station in Washington Heights following an application process that saw 57 people apply, the Department of Transportation told Patch.

Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez announced Wednesday five artists who will beautify the walls of the 191st Street tunnel to "reflect the neighborhood's great culture and identity."

“We took quick action to address a situation that had become blighted inside the 191st Street tunnel and now we have a showcase of talented artists ready to take their understanding of the local community and culture and make a vibrant statement,” Rodriguez said in a news release.

The artist selection process and announcement follows community backlash in January when the colorful 191st Street 1 train tunnel was completely painted over without advanced notice from the Department of Transportation.

Here are the five artists selected, four of whom are Washington Heights residents.

Vicky Azcoitia: The Washington Heights-based artist works with photography and design. Dedicating most of her time to freelance photography, photo-editing, and graphic design, she also works on developing her own documentary photography projects. Azcoitia currently teaches digital photography at the Bronx River Art Center and is a member artist at Cornerstone Studios.

Daniel Bonilla: A Washington Heights and Inwood-born and raised artist who is curating the Riverside-Inwood Neighborhood Gardens ‘Art in the Garden’ for the third year in a row. Bonilla has been an artist his entire life, working previously with Colossal Media and independently since 2019, he strives to do public art in The Heights and Inwood area to feel connected to his neighborhood and roots.

Denise Coke: A Queens-born Caribbean-American who is based in Jamaica, Queens, is an award-winning creative director and owner of $NP Designs who is best described as an augmented reality artist, muralist, and digital artist. Coke visited Washington Heights when younger to visit friends and family and she references the many cultural aspects of Uptown in her work, such as bodegas and bustling city life.

Rasheeda Johnson: A multidisciplinary artist with 13 years as a Washington Heights resident, Johnson has had the opportunity to experience the rich cultures represented in the area which she uses as inspiration for her work. Johnson was exposed to art at a very early age with a scholarship to Saturday art classes at the Carnegie Museum in her hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Carla Torres: A Washington Heights-based artist since 2006, originally from Ecuador, Torres works across several media including drawing, painting, illustration, animation, and murals. Torres has been commissioned by NYC DOT, the Garment District Alliance, NYC Health + Hospitals, the HBO Max Latinx Diaspora Campaign, and Google NYC, and has received a Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Creative Engagement grant three times since 2019.

The Department of Transportation also thanked Council Member Carmen De La Rosa for her help in the process.

The artists will begin worked on the tunnel in the fall with help from local volunteers.

"The work of these five artists will be seen by thousands of subway riders along the 191st Street Tunnel in Washington Heights every day and will inspire all throughout our community," Rep. Adriano Espaillat said in a news release.

The Backstory

On Jan. 20, 2023, the Department of Transportation painted over the colorful 191st Street 1 train station tunnel without advance notice.

Uptown Council Member Carmen De La Rosa and Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance Executive Director Nira Leyva-Gutierrez quickly released a joint statement at the time critiquing the way the city handled the paint project.

"The continual lack of transparency from city agencies has long damaged our community's trust; we are angered and disappointed by the lack of notification and care employed by the Department of Transportation in painting the tunnel without community engagement or planning," the statement read.

• Read More: Backlash After 191st Street Station Tunnel Completely Painted Over

The Department of Transportation told Patch afterwards that the cleaning had to do with preparing a "new art project for the tunnel," but did not speak to the lack of advance notice for the community.

It is now apparent what art project is.

Community members have long pushed for improvements to the troublesome conditions within the 191st street 1 train station and its pedestrian tunnel.

A photo of discarded needles in the uptown tunnel went viral in January 2022, prompting De La Rosa to lead a multiple agency walkthrough of the space to determine solutions.

Going back to nearly a decade ago, a 2014 article in DNAInfo outlined residents frustration with flooding, piles of trash, graffiti and safety worries within the tunnel because of the lack of lighting.

Despite the well-documented issues with the uptown tunnel, community members were vocal about their dislike of the way the city decided to go about painting the space.

Shortly thereafter, the Department of Transportation put out the call for artists to "beautify" the space.

Submissions were due by April 14 and organized by DOT Art.