I used to have a picture of a scenery/nature painter with an underlying quote from Churchill:
“I paint trees because
no tree has ever told me that they do not like my rendition”
As a street photographer, I mainly photograph people and their attitudes/actions. I have also used miles of film doing portraiture work, in an odd way to justify all the medium format cameras I have… in portraiture work, , I have had my share of feedback about how what my camera lens saw differed from how they see themselves.
But no matter the feedback, street photography and portraiture are about telling a story. Perhaps the story as I see it or as I saw it in that moment, but still a story.
… This morning I read an article about taking photos of bicycles and motorbikes. It was not a photography-focused article per se, but an example about how photography can capture ambient and local culture through articles associated with daily activities and behaviors. And, with tactfulness and dexterity, the author used bicycles as not only the most elegant human constructs to transform human energy to motion and locomotion, but as a reflection of the culture, its people and their style of life.
Yes, in my experience it is difficult to exclude bicycles from street photography in Vietnam; mopeds in Taiwan; street bicycles in Amsterdam; and motorcycles in Italy and the United States.
So taking photos of bicycles, or people on them is different than taking photos of trees and mountains. I think…
And, for curiosity reasons, I quickly went through some photos I had taken here and there trying to find bicycles an d bikes that may tell a story.
Baltimore, Maryland. The photo on top of this post is my bicycle I used as main transportation mean in Baltimore. It is a 1970’s Schwinn that I still use today. Originally it was my only transportation on campus as a graduate student.
But this is not really a photo of the Schwinn. Rather, one can see the water s of the Inner Harbor, and on the background the Domino’s sugar factory. As such it is a photo of Baltimore with my bike describing a way of life, at least my life, in those days.
And, another photo from Baltimore this time with an eye on street photography involving a bicycle.
Ferrara, Italy. In this picture I tried to capture youth and passion next to an ancient wall that the city is known for. Of course there was a bicycle there too. This historic city has an undeniable charm and a lifestyle of “no rush”. I have been many times as a healthcare professional and enjoyed the warmth of friendship along with the medieval aesthetics and its closeness to the Po River.
Continuing with the theme of photojournalism, here is another photo from Ferrara, near the central cathedral. The attire of the woman seems a bit anachronistic for the 1990s, yet fit nicely with the attitudes of the city residents and history of the Emilia-Romagna regione.
Cairo, Egypt. I took a series of street photos just after sunset when my work day was over. In this one, the boy and his bicycle are typical of photos one can see from Morocco, Tunisia or Sudan. But my goal was to also capture the men and women in the background as it is very typical for families to go out in the early evening when the temperature drops to a more pleasant level. So indeed, a photo of a boy on a bicycle, but also a glimpse at the local culture and lifestyle.
Oslo, Norway. The sign for reserved parking for the priest and the utilitarian urban transport bicycle harmonize well with the modern architecture of the church in the background. This photo could have been taken in any of the Northern European countries – minimalistic architectural shapes and clear lines.
Somewhere in Asia. I cannot recall where I took this photo, which was possibly about 40 years ago. When I looked at it, it was the “Coca Cola” sign that jumped at me. And, along with the texture of the wall, the ten-speed bicycle provides a contrast of a Western and Eastern “moment”.
Prescott, Arizona. Sometimes an object or a structure adds an aesthetic contrast to what a photographer, or a painter, is framing to tell a story. In this case, the bicycle in front of the City of Prescott City Hall serves as a contrast to the stony wall and the cowboy’s statue on his horse. But it also serves as a gauge for the early morning snow that fell on this High Desert city.
There are only two circular shapes in this photo – the cowboy’s hat brim and the wheels of the bicycle.
Flagstaff, Arizona. I wanted to include one photo of a motorbike/motorcycle) to perhaps contrast the impetus of taking photos of bicycles to those of motorcycles. Indeed, while a bicycle is often a humble mean of transport, the looks and power of the “iron horse” is a different symbol all together. Indeed, one can compare these human engineering products to a race horse compared to a donkey. Or even a mule.
I took this photo as it represents a lifestyle – the attire of the rider, his demeanor, and the store he is about to enter reminded me of a cowboy tying his horse in front of a Saloon to have a drink after a long ride in the Southwestern desert. The horse is now of iron and runs at speeds no four-legged animal can match, but the pride of the rider is not the speed. Rather, it is the nervous beauty of the iron horse; its willingness to become one with the spirit of freedom and discovery of the rider; and, its ability to stop anywhere without needing a meadow for neither grazing nor a stream to quench its thirst.
A bicycle depends on the rider while the rider responds to the capacity of his beast’s iron lungs.
… My introspective meandering through a few of my photos actually helped me come closer to my initial question of “Why take photos of bicycles?” I think eventually, the bicycles (or motorbike) have little to do with the answer. They just fulfill the role of mediators or even perhaps symbols of how people live in various environments. And that leads us to “frame” the photos we want to take with that very cultural context in mind. In a funny way, if people in Oslo, Baltimore, Flagstaff or Ferrara went around riding a goat, we would take photos of goats to describe their lifestyles!
With all this in mind, I cannot end this write-up without referring to my favorite cultural and lifestyle photo framed around bicycles. Interestingly the photographer is unknown and it represents a moment, from back in the 1950s of the Tour de France. It is usually seen in the format of a poster and called “Smokers – an Intimate Portrait of the Tour de France”
Here is the photo:
Clearly, there are numerous themes that transcend the competitive race context. First, the theme of friendship and collegiality rather than the cut-throat image of a race that represents countries. How refreshing it is to see these athletes celebrate life as representative of a sport! Then, there is the theme of an epicurean moment where athletes are lighting up in France. And finally, this photo is all about the joy of being a group, a team, and caring about each other
Did these athletes, after this moment of break, get back in line and do everything to beat their opponents? Of course they did.
But I never thought that the bicycle race had anything to do with the moment of pleasure the unknown photographer captured in this photo.
February 26, 2023
© Vahé A. Kazandjian, 2023
