Waiting for your train just got a whole lot more artsy thanks to Amtrak’s new program.



Waiting for the train in the endless din of loud conversations, footsteps running to catch a closing door, and perhaps a crying child or two isn’t exactly pleasant. Amtrak, whose trains run all over the nation from San Francisco to Boston and back, is improving the overall quality of waiting experiences with art in their stations.

A rotating cast of artists have been participating in Art at Amtrak, a temporary public art program, since June 2022 when it launched at New York City’s Penn Station. The newest edition to the bunch is artwork found at Chicago’s Union Station. Three contemporary artists—Caroline Kent, Chad Kouri, and POSE (Jordan Nickel)—will be on display until mid-2025.

A mural by Kent, whose work specializes in areas such as language, translation, and abstraction, entitled Daydreaming, is now on 40 panels throughout the station. Layering blocks of color invite the viewer to interpret and spend time with what these abstracted shapes represent and communicate.



Kouri, who is known for his multidisciplinary practice playing with improvisation, color, and abstraction which mirrors his mixed-race identity, has his work across the vacant retail spaces inside the station. Metallic, mirrored orbs sit atop colored squares. His work is entitled Reflection Pools Monument and strikes a balance between a playful experience and sophisticated aesthetic.

POSE’s mural, Accord, draws inspiration from a wedding photo shoot he saw during his first visit to the station. An oversized comic strip almost bursts forth from the walls of the station, with characters connecting to passengers as they each depart on their own journeys. POSE’s work began as a graffiti practice and has since evolved into vibrant illustrations and lettering that can be seen on the station’s walls.



The Fall 2024 season of these temporary art installations can be found in several places along a train journey. Another installation location includes the windows of the Cira Skybridge at William H Gray III 30th Street Station. Colorful shapes and lines bend along the windows, highlighting how plant life can thrive even in challenging circumstances, according to a statement.

Brooklyn-based artist Chitra Ganesh and Eirini Linardaki, who is tied to transit through her father’s career as a bus driver in Greece, have their work featured in Penn Station this fall. Another Brooklyn-based artist named Chitra Ganesh also has her work splashed across Moynihan Train Hall.