Urban Art Bike Tenders - Ottawa, Ontario
Posted by: 
Weathervane
N 45° 24.604 W 075° 41.535
18T E 445830 N 5028738
This bike tender, as well as 89 others, can be found along a strech of Bank Street in Ottawa, Ontario.
Waymark Code: WMDNAT
Location: Ontario, Canada
Date Posted: 02/04/2012
Views: 27
"Last year the City of Ottawa put out a call to local artists to submit graphic drawings that would be used as templates for steel bicycle racks. This was part of the long overdue Bank Street North rehabilitation project between Laurier Avenue and the Queensway.
Most welcome are the new "urban art" bike racks. A variety of images were chosen from both established community artists, like Christopher Griffin, and relative newcomers. Some are simple, while others are more graphically complex. 30 original designs are replicated three times down the street and are often inspired by Ottawa itself.
Unlike the majority of public art, the bike racks serve a specific function: to meet the needs of inner city commuters. The old struggle of form vs. function is evident in this case. People take for granted that art is about form (or art for arts sake). Art with a practical function, on the other hand, is something entirely different.
Embracing a piece of art for its own sake is challenging. I admit. Seeing art as something that was made for you to use is another type of appreciation entirely.
This new wave of municipal-funded public art is exciting because it not only connects us as individuals, but it also connects us as communities. Creative communities."
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