Side Street
By DAVID GONZALEZ
Fernando Miteff was inside an empty subway car waiting for the go-ahead from a friend who stood sentry by an open door, scanning the platform for conductors, police officers or anyone else who might disrupt his plan.
“O.K.,” his friend said. “They’re not looking.”
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“Nic’s got a vision, a pure artist’s vision, so I want to support the guy,” said Taki, the artist. “The subways are clean and shiny, so he’s putting in color to make it look alive. It’s compartmentalized, it fits into a frame. It’s artsy. Why didn’t somebody think of this before?”
With hundreds of one-of-a-kind panels that would be the envy of any urban gallery, Mr. Miteff plans to mount an exhibit. Having gotten the information he needed, he is looking ahead, rather than lamenting the 27 years he did not create graffiti. He knows everything is fleeting, so he is savoring the present.
“It’s a magical moment when you walk into a train and suddenly it’s transformed into a mini art show, then it’s gone,” he said. “You can’t be invited to this. You walk in and see it. When we leave, the painting’s gone, like we were never there.”
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