ABOUT
We started this tour in full sunshine at Sorauren Park, where we had our emcees Shamez Amlani and Michael Louis Johnson give introductions and lead the tour. Navid Taslimi was on hand with his tall bike bicycle sound system. Also joining the group was our Rickshaw Residency with artist Zeesy Powers in the seat of honour, curated by Asad Raza. Thanks to Daniel Goggin for pedalling the rickshaw. For some tasty snacks we had Coco & Cowe join us, thanks to Louise, who drove their beautiful bike with frozen treats.
For the third time this summer we were joined by Heather Phillips' Portable Gallery Project with a special installation by Micah Adams made specifically for the miniature gallery space. This was a perfect project to bring with us to our first tour stop at Olga Korper Gallery for an exhibition of Gerald Ferguson's work. The portable gallery is a small scale model of the Olga Korper space, and to see the two side-by-side was intriguing. Thanks to gallery associate Taiga Lipson for speaking so eloquently to the group about Ferguson's work.
The sky grew quite dark and ominous as we worked our way to our second stop, this one in the track at Bishop Marocco/Thomas Merton S. S. As cyclists circled the track on their bikes the afro-brazilian percussion group Maracatu Mar Aberto played. It was at this stop that lightning struck and the sky opened up on us. While magically timed with the performance, the heavy rain meant we had to miss our last two tour stops. Many thanks to Mitchell F. Chan and Bradley Hindson from Studio F Minus for installing their work Dream of Pastures even though we didn't get to it. More thanks to Robert Kananaj for his help with this stop as well. Sadly this is the first time in 6 years we've been rained out, so we've had a good run thus far.
To escape the rain we headed straight to our final stop on the tour, an exhibition of the NetherMind Collective in collaboration with Art Spin. The exhibition sat in a warehouse basement at 128 Sterling Rd. and featured works by Tom Dean with Trevor Wheatley, John Dickson, Catherine Heard, Greg Hefford, Mary Catherine Newcomb, Reinhard Reitzenstein, Lyla Rye and Max Streicher. We were treated to a musical performance, rained out from it's special outdoor location, by Michael Louis Johnson (trumpet), Chris Bezant (guitar) and Chris Kettlewell (bass). Thanks to the Per Se Mobile food truck for setting up outside and to Ryan and Will for tending bar.
More thanks to Bike Pirates and to all of our other amazing volunteers who make this event possible, whether they're checking tickets, fixing bikes, marshalling the bike ride, cleaning up, documenting the event, installing work and more. We would not function without you.
ARTISTS & collaborators
Shamez Amlani, Michael Louis Johnson, Chris Bezant, Chris Kettlewell, Zeesy Powers, Asad Raza, Heather Phillips, Micah Adams, Maracatu Mar Aberto, Studio F Minus, the NetherMind Collective (Tom Dean, John Dickson, Catherine Heard, Greg Hefford, Mary Catherine Newcomb, Reinhard Reitzenstein, Lyla Rye and Max Streicher)
PHOTOS
Emcees Shamez Amlani and Michael Louis Johnson start off the tour
Frozen treats peddled by Coco & Cowe
The Rickshaw Residency gearing up with Zeesy Powers
A participant viewing the Portable Gallery Project
Participants gather in Sorauren Park
The bike tour setting off from Sorauren Park
The tour sets off to our first stop
Michael Louis Johnson as our pied piper
Arriving at Olga Korper for our first stop
Michael Louis Johnson as our pied piper, directing folks into Olga Korper
Visiting an exhibition by Gerald Ferguson at Olga Korper
An exhibition by Gerald Ferguson at Olga Korper
An exhibition by Gerald Ferguson at Olga Korper
An exhibition by Gerald Ferguson at Olga Korper
The Portable Gallery project inside Olga Korper, the space it's modeled after
The Portable Gallery project inside Olga Korper, the space it's modeled after
Taiga Lipson of Olga Korper speaking to the audience about the exhibition
Taiga Lipson of Olga Korper speaking to the audience about the exhibition
Paintings by Gerald Ferguson
Paintings by Gerald Ferguson
Paintings by Gerald Ferguson
Getting ready to head to stop #2
Setting off to Stop #2
Frozen treats courtesy of Coco & Cowe
Cycling to our next stop on the tour
Circling Maracatu Mar Aberto on our bikes in a schoolyard
Performance by Maracatu Mar Aberto
Performance by Maracatu Mar Aberto just before the rain came
Arriving at the bar at our final stop
Our afterparty at the NetherMind Exhibition
Emcees Shamez Amlani and Michael Louis Johnson making announcements at the afterparty
The tour afterparty and opening reception of the NetherMind Exhibition
The tour afterparty and opening reception of the NetherMind Exhibition
Michael Louis Johnson (trumpet), Chris Bezant (guitar) and Chris Kettlewell (bass) performing at the afterparty
The NetherMind Exhibition curated by Art Spin
The NetherMind Exhibition curated by Art Spin
The NetherMind Exhibition curated by Art Spin
The NetherMind Exhibition curated by Art Spin
The NetherMind Exhibition curated by Art Spin
The NetherMind Exhibition curated by Art Spin
PARTNERS