"Why I Ride - The Art of Bicycling" is a thoughtful multi-venue bike culture exhibition showcasing New York artists who are inspired by the freedom and mobility that the bicycle makes possible in NYC. It's up through June 3, at four East Village/Noho bike shops & clubs.

The show is part of Bike Month, an amazing array of events that celebrate bike culture and connect with its inherent greenness. (As part of the month's festivities, I'll be leading the annual Green Apple Cycling Tour.) Great fun, and hey, Bike Month leads right into bike summer, a great time to explore on two wheels the nature that's right nearby in the city!

The exhibition is curated by Elizabeth Stuelke and Carol A. Wood, who also produced an illustrated catalogue with essays (including, yes, one by me) that can be downloaded for free (PDF document). There’s an online gallery, too. The exhibition got a nice write-up by Colin Moynihan in The New York Times:

The art includes photographs of working bicycle messengers; paintings that emphasize the clean, spare lines of stripped-down bikes designed for speed; and an aquatint, etching and marker image that drew inspiration from the greasy chain imprints that stain the calves of some cyclists.

Several works are political, like an installation called “Resist: The Critical Mass Mugshot Project,” which depicts 40 of the several hundred riders who have been arrested in the last few years while participating in monthly bike rides that take place in Manhattan without a permit. The people in that piece are shown photographed straight ahead and in profile, and the project is intended to provoke questions about law enforcement and the nature of criminality...Essays in the catalog include ruminations about the joy of riding over bridges and the indignity of suffering the theft of a bicycle. There is also a polemic by a City Council member, Rosie Mendez, called “Whose Streets? Our Streets!” in which she argues that bicycling is a vital form of transportation that deserves to be encouraged by legislation.

Image: "Outsider Puerto Rico Schwinn Club Man," by Zina Saunders, from "Why I Ride" exhibition

About 10-12 years ago (gulp), I co-curated a show of bicycle art in Eugene, Oregon. I was so impressed with the diverse and creative ways artists approach bicycling as a subject, or part of a subject, and also with the affection bicycles inspire (in both the cyclists depicted and the artists creating the work). Thanks for this great tip, Wendy; looking forward to checking out the show.

Posted by: Emily Gertz on May 14, 2007 10:37 AM

Please note that, while disagreement is fine, insults and abuse are not, and will result in the comment being deleted and a likely ban from commenting.