Kiki & Lala

I am aware that you have to search deep deep in you to find your interest in bikes but I thought you might find this interesting, or not!   Lance Armstrong was recently in the neighborhood to auction off a number of his bikes with the intention of raising funds for his Livestrong Foundation.  He managed to get six world renowned artists to design his bikes for free!  And this is what they came up with.

Shepard Fairey, who was thrust into the minds of the masses thanks to his Barack Obama Hope poster, came up with an interesting bike design using the yellow and black livestrong colors (Cory! Cory! Cory!) and playing with italian inspried architectural designs.  Check out the bike and his Obama Hope poster below.

This next one is my favorite.  Designed by Damien Hirst.  He is famous for integrating once living animals into his art.  For his bike design, he applied real butterflies to the frame and rims of the bike.   Its my fave because its pretty to look at.  I just hope he didn’t have to kill butterflies for this!

The next bike is by a Japanese artist named Yoshitomo Nara.  He is supposed to be a famous contemporary artist in Japan.  He is known for his illustrations of cute looking kids doing dark and not very kiddie things.  For Lance he incorporated these kids wearing boxing gloves and riding UFO’s (huh?) into the frame of the bike. He also inserted a secret message – “Never forget your beginner’s spirit” –  that only the rider can see when he tucks his head to be more aerodynamic.  Nice, no?

This next design is by an artist named Kaws.  He is supposed to be some reputable pop artist.  And for some reason he transformed the wheels to look like two mouths lined with teeth, yes teeth.  This is the bike Lance was using when he crashed and broke his clavicle, but you probably don’t remember…or care.  Check it out below anyway.

Another pop artist named Kenny Scharf designed this next bike.  He transformed the bike to be a space machine as you will see the stars and comets in the frame and wheels of the bike.

Finally, there is the bike designed by Marc Newson.  He’s done work for brands like Nike, Qantas and Dom Perignon.  The polka dots in the bike’s rear wheel actually has a purpose.  It creates the illusion of the wheel pulsating as it spins.

Lance also auctioned off his bike known as the “stolen bike” as it was recently stolen…obvious ba?

Question: What does 1274 and 27.5 mean?  It seems to be a recurring theme in the bike designs.

Answer: Watch the video below to find out.  Heeheehee!  Oh c’mon, being a Gemini, you should be excited about learning new things!  Enjoy!

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