Located in a community-created park at N. Granada Ave, Tucson, Arizona, this walk-in sculpture was designed and constructed by the community and has since become a gateway to the neighborhood and a symbol of public art. The sculpture was commissioned through the Tucson Pima Arts Council Teaching Artist Grant and the artists led a group of local high school students through the process.

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Bike Church references the rich cycling culture found in Tucson through it's recycled bike parts and acts as a communal memorial to cyclists. The custom designed 'stained glass' windows cast vibrant colors onto the white structure during the day and at night  they create a glowing beacon in the landscape. Bike part chimes hang like organ pipes that visitors or the wind can play and fill the surrounding area with sound. The piece has become a landmark and gateway to the neighborhood, becoming a place for sorrow and joy; mourners regularly leave flowers for fallen cyclists and at least one couple has been married inside the piece. Bike Church is an aggregate that the public has enlivened by constantly adding to the artwork and using it in new unexpected ways.

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In 2014 a park was created around the sculpture through a mixture of public and private funds.

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Date:

2009

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Location:

N Granada Ave, Tucson, AZ

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Dimensions:

12' x 12' x 22'

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Media:

powder-coated steel, bicycle parts, acrylic, LED lighting, solar panel

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Commissioning Agency: 

Pima Association of Governments - Teaching Artist Grant, TPAC

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Artist:

Joseph O'Connell, Blessing Hancock