Love & Legacy - Sue Gilbert
Written by Zoe Sharif
Published on August 20th, 2026
In the underground tunnels of New York City, almost every surface is attempting to sell you something. Advertisements compete for viewers’ attention between stations, encouraging commuters to purchase the underwear featured in the most recent Calvin Klein campaign, stream the newest season of The Bear, or pursue a different version of themselves. Then there is Love in Transit NYC.
Vibrant colors are splattered over station walls, and the project makes no demands. It has no call to action, no logo, and for much of its life, no artist’s name. Instead, the installations offer something increasingly uncommon in public space: an unexpected moment of joy.
“I create art that’s all about happiness and joy, and I felt that the world needed more happiness and joy. If I could contribute that through my art, that would be a great thing.”
Sue Gilbert never wanted commuters to know her name.
When Love in Transit NYC began appearing across New York City’s subway system, she intentionally stayed anonymous, hoping viewers would connect with the work rather than the person behind it.
When Love in Transit NYC began appearing across New York City’s subway system, she intentionally stayed anonymous, hoping viewers would connect with the work rather than the person behind it. “I wanted people to focus on the art—not about who’s doing it,” she says. Rather than marketing herself as John D. Rockefeller Sr.’s great-granddaughter, Gilbert envisioned the works as gifts—bright, lighthearted diversions meant to infuse a little joy into daily existence.
After years of selling her work at Seattle art markets, participating in local shows and placing pieces in stores, Gilbert began to feel that her work’s reach was too small. She was hoping for something greater. Growing up just outside of New York City, she was unable to envision a place with greater opportunity. “It’s got hustle, it’s got bustle, it’s a financial center, and… the most incredible place for the arts and culture,” she says.
“Where could I put my art where it would maximize the impact of happiness and joy?” The subway became the obvious answer.
Launched in February 2026, Love In Transit NYC has been quietly placing whimsical, emotionally impactful installations throughout the NYC subway system, with a monthly installation in a different station and a unique theme.
Seeing the subway walls in person confirmed that she had found the right place. Their size and visibility gave her artwork the presence she had imagined from the very beginning.
“It’s a metaphor, really, for going underground with light art, playful art.”
One of Gilbert’s biggest priorities was keeping the artwork off the market.
One of Gilbert’s biggest priorities was keeping the artwork off the market. She emphasized that doing so would take the meaning away from the art itself. “I decided I wasn’t putting the artwork up for sale, because that takes it away from the purpose,” she said.
The project is anti-commercial, with the art installed as a gift for commuters.
Gilbert’s greater body of work is reflected in the title itself. Almost every thing she makes is filled with warmth and affection. The title Love in Transit was inspired by the project’s initial installation, Love, Love, Love. Gilbert explains that the term “love” captures almost everything that viewers will encounter in the series.
Gilbert’s decision to stay anonymous was an easy one. She believes we live in a personality-driven culture. We like to read about personalities and connect people to themes and ideas and she did not feel that would help her goal of focusing on the art.
Gilbert says she enjoys playing, and she wanted the project to reflect that. Commuters were prompted to question who was responsible for the installations by the mystery surrounding the unknown artist, which became an integral part of the experience.
“When you look at a piece of art, your reaction has got to be organic.”
Gilbert ultimately saved a great deal of time and was able to concentrate on the creative process thanks to the anonymity.
Gilbert ultimately saved a great deal of time and was able to concentrate on the creative process thanks to the anonymity. Gilbert’s publicity team eventually persuaded her that revealing herself sooner would increase interest in the installations and encourage more people to view the art, despite her initial desire to stay secret until the project was finished.
“The publicity is lovely… but it’s icing on the cake. I love the cake.”
As an artist, it can be hard to step away from your work and imagine it outside of yourself. Getting nit-picky and ruining crucial moments of creativity and treasure is the hardest part. Being that Gilbert’s team found she was too close to her own work, her Art Director was her unbiased eye. He carefully went through her portfolio and together they came up with pictures, no more than three or four per installation. The team believed that it didn’t resemble a gallery and that the force of repetition was crucial. “We didn’t want it to look like a gallery—’Here’s everything I can do.’ We wanted to create an atmosphere,” she said.
Rather than treating each station like a gallery of unrelated works, Gilbert and her team focused on creating a cohesive atmosphere.
Rather than treating each station like a gallery of unrelated works, Gilbert and her team focused on creating a cohesive atmosphere. Working alongside her art director, they carefully selected three pieces at a time, relying on his fresh perspective to identify combinations she might have overlooked herself. Gilbert collaborated with a designer to select and reconfigure pieces for different stations.
“If you design something to be vertical and suddenly it’s going to be seven feet wide… it’s a wee bit daunting.”
Gilbert explained that the pieces had been years in the making, created over roughly eight years, with about 125 works now in the portfolio. While some were made for specific purposes, and a few started as simple designs for greeting cards, the larger, more significant pieces had been sitting with her for a long time, quietly waiting to be seen.
Although every installation surprised Gilbert emotionally, seeing her work at such a monumental scale transformed it in ways she could have never predicted.
Although every installation surprised Gilbert emotionally, seeing her work at such a monumental scale transformed it in ways she could have never predicted. What had once existed on a much smaller canvas suddenly carried a new emotional, spiritual and visual weight, with the Love, Love, Love installation leaving the strongest impression on her.
“I had never seen them so big, and I had never experienced the impact myself.”
Across the series, Gilbert’s work is united by a playful visual language filled with bold colors, magical worlds and recurring symbols. Throughout the piece, boats, which she interprets as symbols of travel, appear alongside arches that are motivated by her obsession with mysticism. Additionally, words themselves become creative components, magnified and converted into joyful and optimistic messages. “They’re playful, bold colors… imaginary worlds,” she said.
When asked how it felt to create work for commuters who might only glance at it for a few seconds — or not notice it at all amid the rush and distraction of daily life — Gilbert noted she hadn’t made the work with an audience in mind. She described this experience as the nature of public art and anticipated that the great majority of people would just pass by without pausing.
“I expected 99% of the people to walk by. I’m trying to reach the people who are open to it.”
Gilbert’s artistic journey didn’t begin in the traditional sense. Although creativity had always been part of her life through photography, filmmaking and, later, collage, it wasn’t until later in life that she fully embraced art as her calling. After raising a family, she found herself returning to creativity with renewed purpose, discovering not only a passion but the time to fully devote herself to perfecting her craft.
“I think you have to find something worthy in yourself and pursue it.”
Gilbert hopes that by reflecting on her personal journey, others would allow themselves to rekindle their own long-forgotten dreams. Whether it’s returning to a creative practice or discovering an entirely new passion, she believes meaningful work begins with asking what truly brings you joy. “I’m 76, and I just know absolutely that this is keeping me happy and healthy,” she said.
For Gilbert, Love in Transit has been both a public project and a personal affirmation. The support she has received has encouraged her to pursue even more ambitious creative goals, all of which are focused on bringing joy into daily life, while also validating her artistic intuition.
“It helped my courage.”
Some of Gilbert’s most meaningful moments have come not from headlines or publicity, but from spontaneous encounters with commuters.
Some of Gilbert’s most meaningful moments have come not from headlines or publicity, but from spontaneous encounters with commuters. One commuter stopped to shake Gilbert’s hand and simply said, “My name is Brian… I see it every day.” Encounters like these have become some of the most significant moments of the project. “Those are the moments that make it really, really real for me,” said Gilbert.
Gilbert sees legacy as something measured not by wealth, but by the impact a person leaves on others. While she acknowledges the opportunities that privilege has afforded her, she believes the most meaningful legacies are the emotional ones—the kindness, generosity and example we leave behind.
“There’s emotional legacy, and there’s legacy by example.”
Gilbert thinks public art has an equally important part to play, especially in this day and age when uncertainty and bad news influence so much of daily life. She hopes that her art will provide commuters with a fleeting glimmer of hope, something that breaks the monotony and uplifts their spirits, rather than contributing to the noise.
“Anything that can give us a moment’s respite from our worries… I think it is really important.”
With Love in Transit continuing to expand beyond the subway, Gilbert’s mission is reaching even more New Yorkers. The project moved above ground this summer with “Be Seen,” an outdoor installation at Modernhaus on Grand Street running from July 6 through August 3, followed by a feature on the Times Square Jumbotron beginning July 16 and an installation at Moynihan Hall from August 24 through September 21. While the locations may be changing, the intention remains the same: to offer moments of joy, connection and visibility in the spaces people move through every day.
Joy is something you give, not something you sell.
#LoveInTransit #NYC #Legacy #Joy #Create
Zoe Sharif – Born and bred in Queens, New York, Zoe lives at the intersection of street culture, contemporary art, and creative production. With a background in International Criminal Justice, Digital Media & Journalism, her work is shaped by an interest in visual storytelling, public space and the systems that shape how art is communicated and received. She explores creative communities, looking at processes and the ways street-level expression can move between public space and institutional contexts.