Train on its side

Train on Its Side challenges our cultural obsession with speed, progress, and linear movement. The train, a symbol of relentless momentum and industrial purpose, lies quietly on its side—not crashed, but displaced. Though still, it can’t escape the psychological weight of motion and direction that defines its identity.

Set within the calm of the countryside, the work introduces a powerful environmental contrast. Nature becomes a kind of maternal presence—soft, grounding, and ultimately dominant. The landscape subdues the machine, asking it to pause, to reflect, to confront its fate. In this stillness, the train seems almost aware of its own conditioning: built to move, yet incapable of changing course.

This surreal juxtaposition invites us to consider what happens when we step outside the systems we’ve built. It asks: what could collective reimagining bring, if we allowed ourselves to question the speed we’re told to maintain? And what wisdom does the natural world offer, if we are willing to slow down and listen?