One-Track Mind: Drawing the New York Subway

by Ezra Bookstein (Editor/Introduction), Jeremy Workman (Editor/Introduction), Philip Ashforth Coppola (Illustrator)

For decades, Philip Ashforth Coppola has meticulously documented the New York City subway in a series of extraordinary drawings, detailing the terracotta mosaics, faience, and tile patterns that millions of riders pass by every day.

Along with Coppola's intricate ink drawings are anecdotes he assembled through painstaking research involving hundreds of hours poring through microfilms to discover the names behind the artisanship of what is rightly called New York's largest public art work—its legendary subway system.

Genres: Art, New York, History, Nonfiction

157 pages, Hardcover

Published May 1, 2018

Reviews

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful sketches of sights you walk by everyday. Stopped to admire 59th Street Sailing Ship tiles on Indigenous People Day!

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fabulous, detailed drawings, notes and narratives about the New York City subway's mosaics and ornamentation that are so easily overlooked...and should not be. Thankfully one man - Philip Ashford Coppola - has spent a lifetime looking for us. WARNING: Do not read this book if you are not immediately prepared to go to New York City and ride ALL of the subway lines to see these awesome pieces of work (the ones that remain) in their full color glory. Wow!

[Vania · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is like a coffee table book, just a lot more interesting. After reading this book I started noticing these things in the subway and I am now truly fascinated by the art of the subway. It’s a great read, it just to look at. Everyone will enjoy this book. I certainly did.

[Rich · Rating 4 out of 5]

This guy meticulously drew the details of so many subway stations, just to preserve them for posterity. This book is also full of nice tidbits on each station along with the drawings. That's dedication right there...

[Leslie (updates on SG) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible drawings of subway station details; these drawings remind me to find beauty in the most unlikely places.