When I’m looking at images of the Tram by Yegor Kalynychenko, I’m reminded of something very familiar, but I can’t quite put my hands on what it is. I have no idea how it could be from my own past, though, because it is quite modern, with it’s large panes of dark glass and no real resemblance to any bus or train currently transporting citizens from one place to another. Maybe it’s a skyscraper I’m thinking of, with a sleek facade made entirely of this same dark glass, forming geometric angles at the penthouse. Maybe I’m thinking of those wraparound sunglasses that only Kanye can pull off, that look more like a visor to a racing helmet fabricated from one large dark lens. Maybe it’s the simplistic, modern, glassy aesthetic of the iPhone we’re all so familiar with that the Tram is mirroring.
This is no small feat: to come so close to a design as revolutionary and imitated within the tech world as the iPhone, especially on the large scale of a passenger tram. Kalynychenko has really elevated something that we perceive as a mundane component of a busy commute, and integrated a whole new layer of modernity, a gaze into the future of tech and how that will impact our everyday life.
Regardless of what sensory nerve this tram is pinching in me, it’s clear that it stems from something very sleek, something bold. Small details, such as the headlight and rear light that both curve into the shape of a glowing white or red boomerang, highlight the unexpected turns that Kalynychenko has incorporated into his design. Silver accents break up the wash of translucent black. Unlike much of the public transportation we’re familiar with, this design allows streams of natural light to pour into the cars, allowing nature to integrate itself into this giant geometric mechanical snake.Sept. 18, 2014
Scuola Politecnica di Design
Harrington College of Design
Shenkar
Design Skolen Kolding
LOFT 42
World Architecture Festival
