|
Description:
The bicycle locker is rectangular in shape. Two sides are 90 by 48
inches and made of brushed aluminum. The two shorter sides are 39 by
48 inches and composed of steel. The top surface is 39 by 90 inches.
The locker depicts two figures: a sleeping biker draped in a Mexican
blanket and watched over by her bike, and the Pied Piper of
Bicycles. The background is the red rock of the Southwest and is
depicted with cactus and Palo Verde.
Funding:
The project was funded through city of Tempe Capital Improvement
Project Percent for Art funds made available through the Tempe
Transit tax.
Artist biography:
Jenny Kilb is a painter, photographer and author. Her books include
Pilgrim and the sequel, Pilgrim Fool. She has been
photographing and painting the Southwest since the 1970s. She began
writing in 1995, studying with the late Beat Generation novelist
Alan Harrington. Kilb’s work has been exhibited and collected
nationally and internationally.
Artist statement:
When I first saw these two lockers, the lush vegetation in this
location reminded me of the paintings of Henri Rousseau, a French
primitive painter. Most people are familiar with at least some of
his works and, having enjoyed the sense of whimsy I noticed in
several of Tempe’s public art pieces, I decided to parody two of his
more well-known images, The Sleeping Gypsy, and The Snake
Charmer. The bicycles depicted acquire eyes and semi-smiles as a
suggestion of an anthropomorphic enchantment, an evocation of fairy
tales and folklore. The jungle plants of Rousseau become cactus and
Palo Verde.
The Tempe public art program is managed by city
of Tempe Cultural Services staff
with input from the Tempe Municipal Arts Commission, a 15-member,
mayor-appointed advisory board.
|
