When Daniel Nauke, a New York artist and electronics designer, was commissioned 10 years ago by NJ Transit to create an interactive sculpture to grace the area near the Liberty State Park light rail station, he had high hopes about the potential impact of his work.
The piece he produced, a stainless steel and black granite structure about five feet tall with a silver megaphone topping it off, is called ‘Techno Echo,” and has sat in the same spot under a turnpike overpass since late 1999, though it is officially dated 2000.
Although it’s in the shadows and easy to miss by drivers on Jersey City Boulevard, it sits on the most direct path for visitors who walk to the Liberty Science Center from the light rail station.
“It is becoming an embarrassment.”—Daniel Nauke
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It’s supposed to be a “scientific experiment” in keeping with the nearby Liberty Science Center.
However, whether the artwork will be fully realized and functional someday remains in doubt. Nauke is none too happy about that, or about the way his work has been treated by NJ Transit.
Sounds of silence
The echo part of “Techno Echo” has never been installed due to unresolved issues with the transit agency. They own the area where the installation is located. Nauke says they are also responsible for cleaning it, and they haven’t.
Nauke gets angry at the thought of his piece sitting idle without public interaction and says NJ Transit isn’t taking care of the sculpture as originally agreed. During a recent visit by a reporter, it was covered with graffiti and bird droppings.
“I want to file a lawsuit to remove it, get it out of there, because it is gathering bird crap and graffiti,” said Nauke, who last visited the site over four years ago. “It is becoming an embarrassment.”
How they started
Nauke started designing the piece in 1998 when NJ Transit was looking for public art to complement the Liberty State Park light rail stop, which was being built at the time. The agency chose his concept over other submissions.
He came up with his creation by harkening back to his childhood in Huntington, Long Island. “When I was growing up, there was a railroad trestle and, walking under it a lot, when you would yell out, you’d hear an echo,” Nauke said.
His youth was not the only experience that shaped the project. Nauke worked for about six years at Liberty Science Center on their electronic displays, and made some trenchant observations about the children who came through the center.
“There are two kinds of kids that go through Liberty Science Center,” Nauke said. “The ones who go and examine and explore and learn, and the ones that we used to call the ‘Pac-Man,’ whose experience was to push all the buttons and turn every knob on one display, then go on to the next one.”
Nauke did not design “Techno Echo” for the “Pac-Man” kids.
Nauke had hoped children coming across and experiencing his installation would then be prepared for the science attractions awaiting them at Liberty Science Center. The sculpture was designed to be kid-friendly. It has rounded corners and steps for smaller children to reach the megaphone.
But it will be anything but child’s play to complete the project.
Nauke estimates he needs $2,500 to $4,500 from NJ Transit to do so. He also would like for NJ Transit to either put up poles to place the speakers or work out an arrangement with the Turnpike to allow Nauke to place his speakers underneath the Turnpike overpass.
Nauke said NJ Transit had a sufficient budget at the time of the project was mounted for him, but in the 10 years that NJ Transit was supposed to provide access, technology has changed for the project, resulting in additional costs.
He’s tried to reach out to NJ Transit for a resolution, but he said he’s gotten no answer – not even an echo.
NJ Transit spokesperson Dan Stessel said last week that the agency will “take a look” at completing the project in the future. He also said there are plans by NJ Transit to clean “Techno Echo” in the next few weeks.
Ricardo Kaulessar can be reached at rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com.