Critical Mass 5th Annual Art Show
The show is not just about art, and the group is just not about bikes; a look at the social issues at the heart of Critical Mass.
by Leah Pietrusiak
Citylink
February 8, 2002

Suspended from the wall at Heaven Gallery on Milwaukee hung a "high-rider" - a turn-of-the-century bicycle that endured the time of unpaved roads. You know, the kind in the old black-and-white shorts. And one year there was "Helmet," a rotating bookcase hung with different helmets that had survived bicycle crashes - complete with cracks - with a written personal account of the experience for each. Twisted fenders, glass, engines, hubcaps, Pennzoil oil bottles on the street.

For the first show, Travis Culley decided to take all this "stuff" and make a statement. He nailed it to a wooden board, and recreated a car crash, and called it "Delay on the Eisenhower." The artwork varies, but keeps to one theme - the veneration of all aspects of the bicycle. Yep, believe the picture - they just love bikes. As a means of transportation, as a viable alternative to car culture - and as a symbol of community building. And of the reclamation of the streets.

Chicago Critical Mass is hosting its 5th Annual Art Show starting this Saturday, February 9 at 7pm at Heaven Gallery, 1550 N. Milwaukee Avenue. There will be creations like the one on page 4, and even a pink Pixie bike that may just generate some electricity for the show. And probably some photographs - admission for the opening night is $5. Unless you hand the door person a 4 x 6 image of you and your bicycle, that is.

Critical Mass is a movement of sorts. A community activist group in a way. They have rides with various themes (such as last month's polka ride - or the bike shop tour ride) the last Friday of every month. A presence of 300 or so bikers intended to show the strength of the Chicago biking community.

It started in 1992 in San Francisco when a group of bicycle commuters decided to ride home together. And then in Chicago in 1997, when current members got word of the San Fran movement and started distributing flyers. The name "Critical Mass" comes from Ted White's bike-umentary Return of the Scorcher. This video shows intersection crossing etiquette in China's big cities. Cross bike-traffic waits until it has enough riders, i.e., a critical mass, to push its way through an intersection. It's not just for the messengers - or hardcore mountain bikers.

"I'm no special athletic biker, I just started riding my bike to work one day," said Jim Redd, who ended up selling his car two years ago. "Generally it's just commuters and regular people - and it spans the age range. Critical Mass is a transition for a lot of people who want to stop driving so much - and they don't have to feel like they're alone - 'cause there are all these other people doing it."

The Art Show has been around as long as Critical Mass. Jim and Travis were sitting and having a beer at Quenchers talking about how to keep the momentum of this new group going during the winter months. "We had all this energy and all these people - it was a great way to get things going, to get people going. We knew there was a lot of talent out there," said Jim. But talent isn't the point of the show. "It's fun - no one makes any judgments, and a lot of people aren't necessarily 'artists,'" said Jim. "And most of the stuff that comes out is stuff you would've picked anyway."

"Everything goes in - it's not about the best artwork," said Sarah Kaplan, a show organizer who recently moved to Chicago from Philadelphia. Every year there is some kind of performance. One year, one of the "massers," a percussionist, got together some hubcaps and other car parts and made a drum set. This year, there will be a poetry reading on February 14 at 7pm at Heaven.

And just as talent isn't the point of the show - neither are bikes necessarily the point of Critical Mass, according to Travis, a former messenger who just recently - and proudly - bought a 1956 Schwinn with front and back fenders, and even a basket. "The point is not about the bicycle - the point is to open the dialogue between the people where there is none," Travis said. "You can't get to know your neighbor driving in a car next to them - but on a bike, that changes. How can we connect ideas if we can't discuss them in the street?"

In his book, The Immortal Class: Bike Messengers - the Cult of Human Power, Travis discusses some of these deeper social issues at the heart of the Critical Mass movement. "We've been taught to fear the street - as soon as we can walk we're taught how to cross the street," he said. "There's a lack of consideration. Take 'Delay on the Eisenhower.' In a crash where someone may have died - we view it as a 'delay.' Humanity has reached that level."

Massers say that rides are unlike any other experience on the street. "You don't have to look over your shoulder constantly worrying if you're gonna get hit because you're moving with the group, said Jim. "It's like a rolling party." With tandems, high-riders and all. "My first ride was a magical experience...I was almost childlike," said Travis. "I went into the middle of an intersection, laid down my bike, stood on my head and shook my legs."

The Critical Mass Art Show runs through February 22 at Heaven Gallery, 1550 N. Milwaukee Ave. Pedaling Poetry Night will take place on Thursday, February 14 at 7pm at Heaven. And the next ride will be on Friday February 22 at 5:30pm, leaving from Daley Plaza, Dearborn and Washington. Everyone is welcome. For more information, check out their site at www.chicagocriticalmass.org.