What Comes Down, May Go Up.
Designed by Jesse W. Reno in 1891, the escalator is intended to be a transport aid from floor to floor (Fig.1), making stairs increasingly obsolete, a presumption of a lazy modern society to come. Structured with largely grated teeth for grip, careful footing and consistent movement with a progressing smooth banister, a perfect concept for the daily commuter is integrated to compliment the working population. An inviting aesthetic is unnecessary, due to its heavy passing usage, with the daily user content with the primary function of being escorted from A to B.
With the removal of wooden escalators, aluminium and stainless steel were introduced for durability, whilst creating a faster assembly line in the process. A seamless change within a continuously evolving society, etching into the mind that a moving staircase shall get you to your destination more promptly than exercising the legs on the inanimate stairwell. A psychological being is placed into the design, creating a friendly bond with its user, a sense that the step grasps you in and delivers to the next set where a new relationship is formed.
Removing the wooden escalators, brought opportunity to artist Chris Fox, the creator of the visually moving Interloop (Fig.2).
Stripping the design back to its carcass and fundamentals, allows the viewer to appreciate the engineering and progression whilst passing themselves. The sculpted piece presents the lifestyle that it was initially created for, within the setting that it was manufactured for. As presented, it alludes to a non-stop, fluid-like design, with little sign of decay, standing still whilst everything else passes by, a reflection of the communities that possess it.
Simplicity is seen on the surface of the escalator, step-on, step-off, industrialised shine with constant relationships with whoever is transported. Only when presented in a fleshed-out state can it be admired for its qualities and function. There may be a promotion for laziness, or the fear of injury, but this has successfully created a partnership with its current society in which it is embedded. It allows for an emotional connection when still, having a look around as people rush to work, a vantage point, taken for its true purpose, movement.