Union Terminal Mosaic Murals

Here's a very long-delayed posting that I don't really have time to explore in the detail that it deserves. Here are a few pictures of some of the extraordinary mosaics that were originally in the old Union Terminal train station in Cincinnati. These are in the Cincinnati Airport, which means that even if you can't make it downtown to Union Terminal itself you can at least catch a glimpse of them as you pass through Cincinnati. My understanding, and I could certainly be wrong, is that they are the largest non-religious mosaic murals in the world. They were designed by the German artist Winold Reiss back in the early 1930's and celebrated the industries of Cincinnati, back in the day when the Natti was a true working class town.

The mosaics were housed in the glorious old train station, which is a masterpiece of Art Deco art. The station itself was a victim of changing economic times in the US and it's a miracle that the mosaics survived. In fact, the largest one which was am amazing map of the world was destroyed back in the 1970s (it sort of reminds me of how the squares in Savannah almost didn't survive the 1970s and idiotic ideas about urban renewal). Luckily Union Terminal today is a functioning museum center so the mosaics which are still housed there are safe.

Now, it does make you wonder if a celebration of the working man like this would even be possible in today's America?