I am a former Stevens Point resident now residing in the artist´s neighborhood of Pilsen in Chicago, IL.  I live in a birght an colorful artist´s community which is one of the more racially diverse neighborhoods in Chicago. The streets are lined with murals and walking down the street and seeing all of theses colorful murals inspires me a great deal. 

Recently I became a member of the biking culture that has only gotten more popular over the past few years. Immediately I began to miss Stevens Point, know for its many bike trails that connect throughout the city. Now, drawn to reading more books and articles on biking I discovered the life and accomplishments of Major Taylor.

Major Taylor, an “unsung hero” to say the least. Myself being an African American and considering myself pretty knowledgeable of African American history had never even heard of him. I had no idea that he ever exsisted, nor that he was the was the first black international sports superstar and had also spent his last few years here in Chicago. African American history is simply American history and should not be an optional class in our educational system. As an artist I feel that it is my duty not only to tell my story but to help to tell the stories of others as well.

I am proposing a sculpture in tribute to Major Taylor and as an inspiration for bikers and non-bikers everywhere. Major Taylor finnished a mile long race in 1:19 and fought Jim Crow laws and predjuice throughout his career. The scuplture consists of used bicycle rims that will be painted various bright colors to symbolize racial harmony. I will call upon the citizens of both Stevens Point and Chicago to donate the rims, I want people to be a part of the process in this tribute.

The rims will then be mounted to steel poles of varying heights which will be inserted into the ground and mirror shards will be attached to the edges of the rims. The spokes will be mounted with scrap metal so that the wheels turn in the wind creating a beautiful light show to symbolize hope and determination.

This is a site specific sculpture and should be 100 yards long, to sympbolize the 1 mile that Major Taylor biked in one of his most famous races at a speed of 45 mph. Patrons could race from the begining to the end of the sculpture and multiply their time by 17.6 to see how they would compare to Major Taylor. This length and formula can be adjusted to suit the space if needed. I have attached a sketch of  how the ”pinwheels” would look like along a trail, however the number would depend on the amount of support I receive from the citizens of  both cities. 

I am not actually a sculptor but a photographer combining fashion and fine art in my commerical work. Recently I photographed some models for a designer and used my Pilsen neighborhood as a backdrop. I have attached some of those images so that you may see my color inspiration for the sculpture as well.