Saturday, Sept. 22: FRONT Triennial Tour de Art

This all-day bike tour will visit several exhibitions in FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art. FRONT is a mix of artist commissions, performances, films and public programs examining the ever-changing and politically urgent conditions of an American city.

The ride will depart from the bike fix-it station at Coventry Road and North Park Boulevard at 9:30 a.m., then head to University Circle to visit Judy’s Hand Pavilion outside of the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland, as well as several exhibitions and installations at the Cleveland Museum of Art. The tour continues on to Playhouse Square for a viewing of Love Story, a video installation that centers on the cult of celebrity and the overwhelming influence the media exerts on our world view. After stopping to enjoy the Canvas City murals on Prospect Avenue, riders will head downtown to the Cleveland Arcade and Cleveland Public Library. The Arcade features Cleveland’s 1973 City Canvas public art project, while the library’s exhibit, The American Library, consists of 6,000 books, each bearing the name of a first- or second-generation immigrant whose life and work impacted culture.

The next stop is a haunting installation of works by photographer Dawoud Bey at Saint John Episcopal Church in Ohio City, then on to SPACES for A Color Removed—a citywide project that seeks to remove the color orange from Cleveland in response to the shooting of Tamir Rice (the toy pistol he was holding was missing an orange tip meant to denote it was not a real gun). At Transformer Station, we’ll visit Human Right, a project that examines the relationship between personal narratives and social conditions in Middlesbrough, England.

The tour ends at the West Side Market for a fusion of food and art with John Riepenhoff’s Cleveland Curry Kojiwurst special sausage, an original FRONT-commissioned product, being featured in various collaborations with vendors and restaurateurs during the exhibition’s three months. After a lunch break, the group will ride the eight miles back to the Heights. Riders will also have the option to take public transportation back home.

Note: For family bike rides, parents must accompany children under 16. Children must be confident riding on two-wheeled bikes without training wheels. However, children on or in trail-a-bikes, bike trailers, cargo bikes and bikes with child seats are welcome.

For calendar lists of more local and regional rides, go to Heights Bicycle Coalition and Bike Cleveland’s websites.