Several people have pointed me to this bamboo trike that has the general look of a 1970s basket weaving class gone awry.

Sez Inhabitat.com:

Designed by Monash University student Alexander Vittouris, the Ajiro utilizes a production process that removes emissions instead of releasing them into the Earth’s atmosphere. That’s because the bamboo structure of this vehicle is grown straight out of the ground into a preformed mold. Vittouris envisions fields of bamboo gardens growing these human powered bicycles, which need only small modifications once mature to hit the streets.

I’m skeptical. For starters the thing steers with the back wheels using those levers that seem to pop up between the rider’s thighs, and pedals like a bigwheel. This eco-bigwheel seems designed for viral blog posts, not for riding. Sure it won a design contest, but I’m gonna remain a skeptic until we see some photos or a video of it actually being ridden and steered. (Or until he comes out with a smaller version that acknowledges its fundamental bigwheel-ness and calls it a children’s toy!)

Portraits from Panama by photographer José Castrellón.


From the photographer’s website:

The term priti baiks is an evident parody of ‘pretty bikes.’ However priti – widely used among young urban Panamanians – does not exactly mean ‘pretty.’ Something is priti when it possesses an ingenious and striking grace.

José Castrellón’s website. Found via Street Use.

One of these videos is a parody filmed for a comedy show on television. One of them is a totally serious documentary clip. Can you tell the difference?

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A yarn bombed parking meter in Vancouver, from yarnbombing.com.

Cross posted at The Tangled Nest too…

What is it about yarn bombing that’s so compelling? “Knit graffiti” — it brings a smile to my face just to think about it! Guerrilla crafters wrapping yarn creation around objects in the streetscape under the cover of darkness, adding a touch of whimsy and warmth to the built environment we all share.

Part of what I love is the the way, when describing this art form, you can’t avoid juxtaposing words with a Monty Pythonesque absurdity – guerrilla crafting, yarn bombing, knit graffiti, textile street art, yarn core.

Do these purling pirates cover their faces with black hand-knit bandanas as they skulk through the streets in the moonlight? Do they hatch their dastardly plots over Earl Grey tea drunk straight with no chaser? Is there a yarn core bar where embroiderers are tossed into the alley on their ear, and brawls erupt over the relative merits of alpaca and sheep wool? (I certainly hope so!)

Don't mess with yarn core.

Anyhow… when I read that a yarn bombing project had knit round a bike rack at the other end of our own West Seattle neighborhood, I dragged us of all up there to take a look. (Then Lyanda and I got to have a little debate about whether this would make a better Bikejuju or Tangled Nest blog post – the answer is both!).

West Seattle knitter Jaesee wrapped this bike rack as her first yarn bombing project, and started an appropriately tough-sounding blog to document it and tantalize us with the promise of more of these dangerous urban guerrilla yarn actions to come.

It’s a wonderful little burst of color and flowers in our gray Seattle spring, and as we walked over through the drizzle to look at it, another fellow was also circling the bike rack and touching it. Yarn bombing is definitely a tactile art form; we also could not resist touching this installation, feeling its texture and figuring out how it had been made and attached.

Lyanda, Claire and I have all been pondering guerrilla art projects this spring, and we’re even more inspired now. Our projects probably won’t be knit graffiti, but I, for one, definitely aspire to find an art form with an equally hardcore-yet-whimsical name. Suggestions welcome.

PS: Higher-resolutions versions of these photos available for free use on Flickr.

Oregon artist Chris Cole writes:

I’m happy to have finished my newest sculpture, “Galia” as well as several new paintings, “Mollusk,” “Tesla,” “Fruit, and “No. 127.” I will be showing these pieces along with other ocean inspired works April 7 – April 30 at our new space (in Portland, OR) in the Everett Station Lofts: Werks Gallery. If you’re in the Portland area, come by Thursday April 7 between 6-9 pm for the opening. If you can’t make it, you can view everything on my website.

Chris says Galia is a hand-cranked fish with parts moving at 3 different speeds. She is made of 1226 welds, 105 hand-cut pieces of steel, 17 bicycle cogs, 10 bicycle hubs, 13 bicycle dropouts, 2 mountain bike cassettes, 24 feet of bike chain, and took more than 240 hours to build. I have always wanted to see one of his sculptures in person. If you go and see them, report back!

(Previously Bikejuju mentioned Chris Cole here.)

The ever-awesome Gurldoggie has awakened my from by torpor and inspired me to re-post this marvelous contraption video featuring the Swedish artist Akay and his overly-complicated rainbow-maker.

robo-rainbow from mudlevel on Vimeo.

For The Love Of Bikes posts many many great tidbits of velo-goodness, and this one is too good not to share. Check out the magical whimsy of these 1963 fashion photos by Melvin Sokolsky, shot for Harper’s Bazaar.

Chris Piascik is an illustrator and designer based in Connecticut. He recently self-published a zine called “All My Bikes.” I love his hand-drawn typography.

Chris says:

Full color, 28-page zine featuring illustrations of every bike I have ever owned. Since a young age I have been completely bike crazy, because of that I’ve had lots of different bikes of all shapes and sizes. Highlights include: General Hustler, Robinson SST, Schwinn Predator, S&M Holmes, Soma Rush, Standard 125R, Milwaukee Bruiser, All-City Dropout, FBM Joint 2, Freeman Transport.

The zine was printed in a signed, numbered edition of 100, and as of this writing a few are left at Print Brigade.

Related Bikejuju Post: Artist Profile: Chris Koelle • Bike Snob Book Illustrator

A great sketch from our friend Cabelo in Brazil.

My parents sent me this wonderful Edward Gorey postcard.