By CB Liddell

Travel Sep. 07, 2008 - 06:25AM JST ( 1 )

Stick almost anything in a trendy art gallery, and people will immediately look at it in a new light. Where before there were random assemblages of bricks, daubs of paint, or even a collection of soup cans, viewers will suddenly see admirable technique, profound meaning and aesthetic quality. The concept of “art,” it seems, helps us to unlock the beauty inherent in man-made objects. It is a shame, then, that it isn’t applied beyond the usual confines of a museum or gallery, as we might find that we’re surrounded by a lot more beauty than we realize.

A visit to The Railway Museum in Omiya is a kind of halfway house to developing this kind of expansive approach. Opened in October 2007, the museum sets out to commemorate and educate rather than to aesthetically elevate, focusing on presenting a good cross-section of Japanese trains through the ages. Altogether there are 35 rail vehicles, including locomotives, passenger carriages and freight cars. The oldest is Locomotive No. 1, a well-preserved steam engine built in England in 1871.

The vehicles are displayed in a manner that seems aimed at wannabe engineers or trainspotters keen to check how the air vents on the Class Kuha 481 Electric Railcar differ from those on the 181 model. All the trains can be viewed from above by ascending to the second-floor gallery. Others can be “inspected” from underneath, and a few, like the Class 9850 Mallet Steam Locomotive from 1912, have been partially dissected to reveal their inner mechanisms — a process that works against aesthetic appeal. Despite the tech-oriented approach, there is much of beauty to be found at this permanent exhibition.

The interior of the 1932-vintage Class Kiha 41300 Railcar, with its curved metal roof, globe lighting and forward-facing seats, conveys subdued elegance with a hint of Art Deco, while the aerodynamic nose of the Series 200 Shinkansen, from 1980, combines geometric beauty with the human warmth of hand-hammered metal and a retro-futurist vibe.

The aesthetic quality of a rail vehicle is closely tied to its function, so the deepest impact is made by those engines which give the best impression of how the forces of dynamism were harnessed. The Class C51 Steam Locomotive from 1937, with its dense, compact design and intricate pipework, creates a vivid impression of vitality that recalls the appeal trains once held for artists of the early 20th-century Futurist movement.

For many, the appeal of the vehicles lies in the nostalgia. As museum spokesman Torahiko Kasai points out, “Trains have a special image for Japanese people.”

Part of this stems from the key role that railways have played in a society characterized by mass migration to the cities, with occasional return visits to rustic hometowns. The train is often a symbol of that lingering connection and sense of identity.

For younger visitors, the appeal is much more visceral, something that the museum capitalizes on with the other attractions, including four full-sized, partially mobile train simulators, which can be controlled by wannabe train drivers, and a miniature railway in the museum grounds.

Compared with much of the art that finds its way into galleries today, the items on display at The Train Museum have a lot to offer: history, nostalgia and a gruff, utilitarian beauty. And whereas you wouldn’t want junior clambering over the latest Damien Hirst or poking his fingers into a Hokusai, that simply isn’t a problem here.

This article originally appeared in Metropolis magazine (www.metropolis.co.jp).