Subway Parasite: Stealth Projector Lights Up Train Tunnels

Watching the city go by from an elevated or even ground-level rail system can be relaxing, but the transition to an underground section is at best boring, at worst jarring.

Here to lighten the mood a bit during the duller parts of your nighttime or subterranean transit is a quirky little device designed to attach to the outer shell of a passenger train. It was created by Frédéric Eyl for a Digital Media course at the University of the Arts in Berlin.

Suddenly there is a school of fish struggling to keep up, an under-earth ecosystem, or some other speed-appropriate scene to liven your day. Of course, actually sticking one of these on an unsuspecting car might be cause for police concern, so whether they will work well without approval is another matter.

From the artist: “Parasite is an independant projection-system that can be attached to subways and other trains with suction pads. Using the speed of the train as parameter for the projected content, the projection starts with the train moving inside a tunnel. These tunnels bear something mystic — most people usually have never made a step inside any of those tunnels. Confusing the routine of your train-travelling-journey, your habits and perception the projections Parallel Worlds — making use of Parasite — allow you a glimpse into a different world full of surrealist imagery.”