Angela Richardson describes "Art Pedaler" as an artistic celebration of bicycles, lasting "one fabulous night only." The Dec. 12 event at Revolution Cycles features prints, photos, sculptural work and paintings - along with jewelry, belts, cuffs and bracelets crafted from recycled bicycle parts - by more than 20 local artists. DJ MoPetto will provide the music.
Revolution Cycles has become known in recent years for hosting everything from local and touring bands to the Sprockettes mini-bike performance revue. "We figured it was about time to get an art show in there," says Richardson, who lives a few blocks from the Atwood Avenue bike shop.
"We," she explains, are a "little team of bike-art geeks" who are organizing the event. Its exhibitors, she adds, are "people involved in Madison bike culture who also happen to be artists."
What's so esthetically appealing about bikes? Richardson notes their endless variety and their capacity to be personalized. "I have a bike I've been riding for about 17 years," she notes. Its decals long gone, it is black, covered with stripes of reflective white tape, accessorized with a big basket. "It's a tank," she says, "and it's a bike that I love."
Richardson sees "Art Pedaler" as an "art-show-slash-holiday-party." The works will sell for $25 or less. "It's very much in the spirit of making art accessible to folks," she explains. "We want to make it possible for people to do their holiday shopping and get some cool art without breaking the bank."
A portion of the evening's proceeds will support Mess Hall Press, the Goodman Community Center's screen-printing program for teens. Visitors are also encouraged to bring nonperishable food donations for the Goodman Center's food pantry.
"There's stuff like this that goes on all around the country," Richardson observes, citing Artcrank, the series of bicycle poster shows held in big bike burgs like San Francisco and Portland. A previous "Art Pedaler" show took place about a year and a half ago at a local coffee shop, she adds.
This edition of "Art Pedaler" reflects the growing vibrancy of Madison's bike culture and its convergence with the local art scene. "There's a lot of crossover going on between those worlds already," Richardson says. "The 'Art Pedaler' event is where velophiles and art lovers can meet and mix it up."
