Application to Spectropolis, 2004 Artist Statement Detailed Description Technical Description Visual Documentation Project Timeline Josh Kinberg Bio and CV   Detailed Description Does the proposed project form a relationship with, or have a dialogue with the peculiar features of the urban setting—e.g. density, heterogeneity, anonymity, spatial complexity and movement? Bikes Against Bush occurs simultaneously in two spaces: online and on the streets of New York City. Online users can participate in the performance and follow it in real-time through the project website. In physical space, Bikes Against Bush transforms the urban fabric of NYC (namely city streets and sidewalks) into a canvas for alternative political expression during the 2004 Republican National Convention. Does the project assist individuals and/or groups in personalizing and humanizing the urban environment in some way? By using a bicycle, Bikes Against Bush emphazises the necessity of human presence for direct action protest. While online users may participate telepresently, human-power plays a central role in the performance. Does the project enable individuals to insert themselves into the larger power structure, or find ways in which to exercise choice and control? Bikes Against Bush enables web users to contribute their voice to an alternative form of creative resistance to the RNC. While the mainstream media delivers its version of the RNC on the nightly news, Bikes Against Bush will engage New Yorkers and Convention Delegates on the streets through direct action, tactical media, and a viral Internet campaign. Does the project reveal aspects of the urban environment that are invisible or simply unknowable? Bicycles are extremely versatile vehicles that travel many places inaccessible by automobiles and other forms of transportation. Bicycles are also traditionally symbols of political movements ranging from the women’s movement in the latter 19th century, to the labor movements of the early 20th century, through today where bicycles are held in high esteem by environmental enthusiasts who view them as a clean, energy-efficient alternative to a global dependence on oil and urban sprawl. Springing from the overlap of urban bicycle culture and political activism, Bikes Against Bush is constructed as a fantastical urban farce -- at once a beacon for play and direct action inquiry. In performance, this tacitly surreal artifact ignites our imagination about the boundaries of bike and computer, mundane and hi-tech, street protest and online activism, mediated play and spectacle. Does the project enable individuals to navigate through urban space in ways that are non-goal oriented, idiosyncratic and playful, or alternatively help mobilize the concerted action of massive assemblies of people with common interests? When the cyclist prints a message, bikesagainstbush.com automatically updates a live map marking the location of the message. A webcam on the bike also documents this with a snapshot at the moment of printing. Thus, while the printed text is ephemeral, biodegrading in a matter of days, the moment printing and location of printed messages are recorded online.