Sarah Dahnke

"We move toward mobility."

This particular line from poet Richard Fox highlights the core of the Museum of Contemporary Art's current "12 x 12" show, "Shared: Chicago Blue Bikes," by artist Kevin Kaempf's organization, People Powered.

The exhibit, which currently displays just a handful of cruisers and ten-speeds, encourages members of the community to grab one of Kaempf's blue bikes, use it as they wish and either pass it to a friend or leave it where someone else will use it. This inertia created by the bikes constantly migrating through neighborhoods shapes the program in a way that brings an artistic statement to an otherwise environmental action, a move that Kaempf said was deliberate in order to encourage and inspire a deeper discussion regarding the conservation of fossil fuel.

While the bikes on display at the MCA are currently only for show, Kaempf's master plan involves collecting around forty bikes, adorning them all with the same Chicago Blue Bag-esque royal blue, and leaving them near Blue Line stops throughout the city. He said he hopes the current "12 x 12" exhibit generates some community interest in the project, which could ultimately lead to bike donations and assist the program's proposed launch in summer 2007.

Fox's contribution to the exhibit is truly the artistic soul, as his forty-line poem, composed specifically for the program, brings alive the excitement and sometimes danger of biking in the city. He nods to the heat and aggression sometimes experienced by everyday bikers who must navigate the streets among cars, but he also praises the city streets and how they simply link. Kaempf's vision is to place one line of poetry on each of People Powered's blue bikes, and the prototypes demonstrate various locations for these words. Each bike is adorned with an accessory, such as a flag or a zip pouch, where the phrases are stenciled in blue and displayed prominently.

"Shared," while not a blatant anti-car statement, aims to show the city that conservation is as simple as conserving a few gallons of gas and navigating the road, powered by nothing but human force.

"Shared: Chicago Blue Bikes" shows at the Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 East Chicago Avenue, (312)280-2660, through Oct. 1.

(2006-09-12)

Also by Sarah Dahnke

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