Vélo Series
The Bicycle
I arrived at the top of the Col de la Forclaz on a rented mountain bike and was greeted by a postcard view of Lake Annecy. In front of my viewing spot and next to the parapente take-off platform, I discovered this old, rusted bicycle that had seemingly occupied the same place for decades. The bike melded into the landscape as if it were a natural part of it, and prompted thoughts of what an ascent of the col would have been like on such a specimen some years ago.
Col de la Forclaz
Hanging on the wall of Peter and Tracy's house in Boulder is a large, framed photo of a bicycle taken by Sarah during a trip to Italy some years ago. Blown up and framed, it made a nice wedding present and an artistic addition to the Hyland's home.
There is something both rustic and imaginative, both banal and creative about an old bike stripped of sponsor logos and flashy components in the European landscape. It's as if the countryside gave birth to the bicycle itself. Or perhaps the bicycle made the countryside. The two entwine with each other in the imagination and history of the land that gave birth to competitive cycling.
With thoughts of Sarah's photo in my mind, the discovery of the Col de la Forclaz bike marked the beginning of my own Velo Series of photos. The goal was straightforward: to document the beauty of the bicycle in all its plain glory.
Poste par Vélo
Poste par VéloThe bicycle
is about transportation. Whether moving about town or racing at
top speed. Movement is the common goal. Delivery of goods and
people to places.
I took this photo on a street on the left bank in Paris. Three colors, three items. Green bike, yellow mailbox, blue door. The combination of the solid green, yellow and blue provide a stark albeit somewhat natural contrast with each other and an interesting juxtaposition with the dull tones of the building and street.
Movement. Green, yellow, blue. From Il Postino to the US Postal cycling team, bikes and the post have created an affinity for one another. The mixture of old and new in both the photo and imagination plays on this theme. I also see the three key elements represented by the contrastive colors (bike, mailbox, door) as symbolic of movement (bike) and delivery (mail) of people to places (door of the home). A microcosm of existence centered on the bicycle.