Art bikes: inspire your ride
We’re partnering with three celebrated Bay Area artists to transform our fleet of classic bikes into mobile works of art. These distinctive designs are rooted in the vibrant arts culture of the Bay Area.
Why art bikes?
We wanted our bikes to reflect the Bay Area’s unique culture and longstanding artistic tradition. Art creates connections within communities and celebrates the cities we call home.
Meet the artists
HUEMAN
Urban Fauna
Water-based spray paint and acrylic
Hueman is an artist from Oakland, CA who explores the human condition through colorful painted mashups of the abstract and figurative. Her unique process involves creating tightly refined compositions from an improvised underpainting of drips and sprays. Her layered works can be seen on streets and in galleries worldwide.
"I took photos of the flowers along the pathways and used them as living symbols that straddle the line between nature and the city."
Q & A with the artist
Q: What inspired this piece?
A: The Oakland waterfront is where wildlife collides with the urban landscape. I explored the public shoreline on the Oakland waterfront, from Jack London Square to Middle Harbor Shoreline Park and the Oakland Estuary — public places that can be discovered on foot or bike. I took photos of the flowers along the pathways and used them as living symbols that straddle the line between nature and the city.
Q: What drew you to this collaboration?
A: I think the bikeshare program is such a great concept, and the thought of my art traveling throughout the city was an opportunity that I couldn’t pass on.
Q: What do you love most about the Bay Area?
A: Hands down the people and the weather. I may be biased because I grew up in the Bay, but I don’t think you can get a better combination anywhere else.
ZIO ZIEGLER
Full Awareness, 2019
Gouache, oil paint, acrylic, and Flashe
Zio Ziegler is an artist, known for his large scale paintings and sculptures. He started with painting murals in San Francisco’s Mission District.
His immersive paintings blend an interest in consciousness, allegory and pattern recognition, and are intended to challenge the viewers experience of “reality”. His work has appeared internationally in museums and galleries, as well as on limited product collaborations.
“Which will you have? Wise madness or foolish certainty?”
Q & A with the artist
Q: What inspired this piece?
A: There’s this Cervantes quote from Don Quixote: "Which will you have? Wise madness or foolish certainty?" I think we all have our horse or our mule. Our outlook within a shared, subjective experience. The bike is a catalyst or an exploratory vehicle in that sense. Something to sit on that immerses us in an ephemeral, fluid environment. Making art in that context acknowledges that we all have our biases, but we’re also all unified because of that experience and that journey."
Q: What do you love most about the Bay Area?
A: I love feeling like I'm connected with nature. The land is protected, a complete sanctuaryI feel very lucky knowing I can escape into that, but also have a cultural tether back to a dense, urban city that's evolving so quickly. Bikes are an incredible device to recontextualize my life.
Q: What drew you to this collaboration?
A: It’s an intersection of my interests. At a mural or an exhibition, two people from very different walks of life can start a conversation — and if it’s abstract enough, it can help build friendships and open people to each other. That’s what bikes stimulate, too. I think we'd have a much gentler civilization if people commuted on bikes. You’re out there, you connect, and you’re forced to be present in a different way. Bikes are a unifier in the same way that art is.
BARRY MCGEE
Patterned Bike
Inspired by photos of bicycle culture in SF
Barry McGee is a celebrated artist and graffiti culture icon who lives and works in San Francisco. For the past 25 years, he has exhibited his work internationally in museums and galleries.
“This project feels more for the masses and that always warms my heart. For me, Bicycling is one of the simplest forms of protest.”
Q & A with the artist
Q: What did you use to create these designs?
A: I’ve been interested in bicycles and their utilitarian use for well over 45 years. I mainly used photos and friends’ photos of bicycle culture in San Francisco. The bicycle straddles both the high and low end of the economic spectrum. I’ve always been fascinated by that.
Q: What drew you to this collaboration?
A: As I mentioned earlier, my life has constantly revolved around bicycles so it was a natural fit. I’ve done projects for Cinelli in the past, which were more high-end. This project feels more for the masses and that always warms my heart. For me, bicycling is one of the simplest forms of protest. I hope we gain critical mass here in SF with bicycles and pedestrians filling the roadways.
Q: What do you love most about the Bay Area?
A: I love San Francisco for its constantly changing, yet diverse populations. It’s gritty & vulnerable and always surprises me. I’m constantly inspired here.