Bike parts normally go on bikes, as nature intended, but occasionally they can find other homes, like on your walls. At the Bike Part Art Show, local artists have sifted through the unusable parts left over from Neighborhood Bike Works’ (NBW) community and youth cycling programs and created pieces of sculpture that entrance the eye and engage the mind.
NBW is a nonprofit that hosts free youth cycling classes and summer camps where local youth learn how bikes work, how to repair them and, in the process, build a bike of their own to take home. The programs are free and serve kids who would not have access to bikes or classes otherwise. NBW also hosts free bike repair nights every week at the Bike Church (3916 Locust Walk). The bikes and parts come from donations and dumps, but there are always some parts that just will not work anymore.
That’s what the art show is for. It’s a fundraiser for NBW to support their programs, so when you buy a piece you’re helping kids as well as adding to your art collection and recycling bike parts. The show will open at Studio 34 in West Philly on Aug. 28 with limited displays, and then on Sept. 18 the full show opens with a big party. Kiss Kiss Kill and DJ Ross of Love will perform; there will be beer from Victory and Dock Street, and snacks from Bacchus Market.
Bike Part Art Show, Aug. 28- Sept. 18, 7 p.m.-10 p.m., Studio 34, 4522 Baltimore Ave., 215-387-3434. studio34yoga.com
