Ride It: Art and Bicycles in Rochester – Part I

Original artwork by Cordell Cordaro

“Ride It: Art and Bicycles in Rochester” is the name of the current exhibit at the Rochester Contemporary Art Center. I like art, and I like to bike, so the title certainly sounded intriguing. I'd only ever been to the RoCo before to see the 6x6 exhibits, so it was about time to see what went on the other 47 weeks of the year!

Image from U of R's Library

I was impressed by the extensive exhibit in this compact space. Executive Director and Curator Bleu Cease has thoughtfully put together a varied collection of fine art by Cordell Cordaro, photographs of random Rochesterian bikers, and reproductions of images from the University of Rochester's Rare Books and Special Collections Library (including one of women working on their bikes - something i still cannot do myself!).

Rochester cycling events calendar

There is also a marvelously creative cycling calendar of local biking events. And 10 short films, all of which I had to watch (and the beauty of a “short” is that if you don't like one, it isn't long before the next one). My absolute favorites were the delightful “The Man Who Lived on His Bike” (by Guillaume Blanchet), which I watched twice, and the Chaplinesque “Le Grand Tour” (by Russ Lamoureux). Some of the other shorts were less entertaining than they were powerful commentary on the transformational effect of bicycles on the lives of people in less developed countries.

Two of the great things about RoCo are its manageable size and its nominal admission charge. So you can pop in for 10 minutes before or after lunch downtown. Or you can make it a destination on its own and easily spend an hour. This exhibit only runs until May 15, unfortunately. But RoCo will need some downtime to get ready for their annual 6x6 exhibit. Bleu gave me a peek in the room where staff are busily opening boxes of submissions and cataloging them for the show. From the few pieces I spied, it looks like it's going to be another great exhibit, and the best thing is, every piece, regardless of creator, is a very affordable $20! (6x6x2015 opens June 6 and runs through July 12).