Art or Not?

One thing I’ve always enjoyed about riding a bike is the chance to think. Often the simple task of riding along has left my mind time to wander, or to filter through the things I need to make decisions on, leaving me with a residue of right answers once I get off the bike. Of course this is true more on the quiet roads and bridleways rather than the hectic streets of London, where you need your wits firmly about you to avoid being killed several times on your way home.

Should you find yourself in this state of contemplation, one thing you might like to think about is the eternal question of what constitutes art. In fact you might find that you are art yourself at that very moment, at least if you agree with YBA Gavin Turk. He led a bike ride claiming to be art itself this summer from Ipswich to Felixstowe, and also brought his “Bikes du Bois Rond” to open the Bicycle Film Festival last weekend. Whatever your interpretation of art, it’s nice to feel that you might be it, at lease while on your bike. Or, on the other hand, it sounds a little like finding a perfect excuse to just go riding,l while claiming it’s part of your job.

If that’s art then I suppose this is as well, as Quatar plays host to a mammoth Fortress Challenge Mountain Bike race which has either happened or will happen in a couple of days, depending which part of the press release you believe. I’m going with the 22nd of October, so look out for more coverage of the race on the internet. And don’t forget it’s not racing, it’s art.

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