1. Yuyuan Garden, Shanghai
Shanghai’s deepest metro station is located in the tourist heart of the city. She gives her modern appearance received two years ago, after a large-scale restoration. Designers and architects from New York got inspired the outlines of the Huangpu River, flowing above the subway, and designed the vaults in a “water” style.
According to the authors, the appearance of the “Yuyuan Garden” reflects The openness and cosmopolitan spirit of Shanghai: the curves of traditional Chinese cornices here are in harmony with the geometric shapes of Western arcades. And when the lighting turns on under the ceiling, the station turns into a full-fledged art object.
2. City Hall, New York
The fate of the station is as unfair as its interior is beautiful. City Hall, opened in 1904, was to become the crown jewel of the metro. The city hall is located directly above it, so the station was decorated with special care. platform decorated in the then fashionable American Art Deco style. Horn chandeliers, skylights, stained glass windows and tiles – all this still looks too rich for the utilitarian New York subway.
But the city grew, and over time the curved platform no longer met the new standards of passenger trains. Therefore, the station was closed in 1945. Now see the abandoned beauty Can, if you hide from the subway workers and take the No. 6 train along the Lexington Avenue line beyond the terminus, it will make a loop through City Hall. More legitimate ways are to take a tour from the New York Transportation Museum or watch the movie Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Some scenes were filmed directly on the City Hall platform.
3. Mayakovskaya, Moscow
Muscovites love Mayakovka so much that in recent years it has received titles and beautifuland herself romantic stations. Even now it looks quite futuristic, although it was opened 86 years ago – the design was ahead of its time. It’s as if classicism and high-tech were mixed here, which did not yet exist during the construction of Mayakovskaya. Thanks to this, the architectural project, unique in its times, received recognition even before the opening – in 1937, the station noted at the World Exhibition in Paris. And two years later, the object received the Grand Prix at the international exhibition in New York.
By the way, the theme of innovation continues to live in the art projects of the metro. For example, the exhibition “Moscow Transport in the Masterpiece” is currently taking place in the subway. Passengers can see what popular stations would look like if they were designed by artificial intelligence.
The neural network also drew Mayakovskaya: in this version of the station’s design, a huge lighthouse became a key design element.
4. Westfriedhof, Munich
This station is an example of how one detail can change everything. “Westfriedhof” opened in 1998, and it didn’t stand out with anything special then – it turned out to be a typical gray metro station.
But two years later, 11 huge lamps with red, yellow and blue lamps were installed here. The walls were also illuminated in blue-violet. It turned out so conceptual and mysterious that Westfriedhof is regularly used by advertising agencies for photo shoots. And also the interior of the station in 2010 decorated album cover of the British band The Haggis Horns.
5. Toledo, Naples
Playing with shapes, well-arranged light and an incredible amount of white and blue mosaics create for passengers the effect of immersion either in the underwater world or in the snowy kingdom. The modern look of Toledo received thanks to the program for the construction and renovation of the city’s metro stations, Stazioni dell’arte (“Art Stations”), when world-famous designers and architects took up the design of the Naples subway.
The renovated station opened in 2013 and immediately received the prestigious LEAF architectural award for the best public building of the year. Since then, Toledo has regularly topped the lists of the most beautiful and impressive metro sites in the world.
6. Solna-Centrum, Stockholm
It also constantly appears in ratings of the most beautiful metro stations. Perhaps the most impressive fact about Solna Centrum and other Stockholm metro blue line stations is their location. In the mid-70s, designers literally knocked out branch in the rock and, instead of enclosing the tunnel, they left the rock exposed, making it part of the interior of the platforms.
“Solna‑Centrum” is painted in bright shades: red symbolizes the setting sun, and green is the forest. They are complemented by paintings that illustrate the important social problems of Sweden in the 70s: deteriorating ecology, deforestation and depopulation of the countryside.
7. “Arbatskaya”, Moscow
If the word “luxury” had a generally accepted standard, this station might well exemplify it. “Arbatskaya” was badly damaged during the bombing of Moscow in 1941, and in 1951 it was started rebuild. The architects proposed a rather bold solution for that time: to revive the Moscow Baroque style, which was fashionable at the beginning of the 18th century. Rich stucco molding, high vaulted ceilings, heavy bronze chandeliers, elegant lamps, stained glass windows and bas-reliefs – among such royal decoration you will feel a little richer.
8. Yongwan, Pyongyang
The Internet is not replete with photographs of the Pyongyang metro, or indeed any other information about North Korea. However, Yongwan Station is an exception; it can be viewed from literally all sides. This is because during the years of subway construction, the country’s leadership did not skimp on unique design solutions.
The inside is very spacious and beautiful in its own way. Whole station built shaped like a cathedral with columns and semi-circular vaults, and the walls are decorated with murals depicting the serene landscapes of Pyongyang. The transition to the lobby is “guarded” by a huge portrait of the leader of the Juche Empire. But, perhaps, the main highlight of the decor is the fantasy chandeliers. They symbolize begonia, the national flower of North Korea.
9. Formosa Boulevard, Kaohsiung
The station was open in 2009, right before the start of the World Games held in Taiwan. It has become an important tourist attraction thanks to its Dome of Light, the largest glass art installation. A huge circle with a diameter of 30 meters consists of from more than 4,000 stained glass panels that symbolize water, fire, earth and air. “Formosa Boulevard” constantly appears in various ratings. For example, in 2014, the CNN Travel portal turned on object on the list of the most beautiful metro stations in the world.
10. Notting Hill Gate, London
Even the British media have no hesitation admitthat the definition of “beautiful” does not apply to most London Underground interiors. However, Notting Hill Gate is one of the few exception stations.
On sunny days, the platforms of one of the oldest metro stations in the country are flooded with bright light. And looking across the tracks, passengers can appreciate the incredible symmetry of lines and architecture. Notting Hill Gate has been around for over 150 years, and of course the station has been rebuilt and updated since it opened. But it seems that the atmosphere and spirit of old London have been preserved here.
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