The Coloradoan
Taliah Lempert's love affair with the bike began out of necessity. Living in New York City she relied upon the two-wheeled contraption as her favorite means of transportation. "I ride a bicycle. It's my source of transportation," said Lempert, who opens a show this weekend at the Lincoln Center.
"My family is really into bikes" Her paintings are portraits of different bicycles, shown from a variety of perspectives. Her work captures,the mechanics of the machine with an artistic eye.
"People put a lot into their bikes," Lempert said. "Both riding them and fixing them up. The more time people spend with them, the more they take on an interesting character."
The exhibit is the Lincoln Center's way of celebrating Colorado Bike Month, which is June. "The city transportation department came to us with the idea of featuring this artist this month," said Ellen Martin, visual arts coordinator at the Lincoln Center.
Photo Courtesy Taliah Lempert
ON THE GO: "Eli's Bike" by New York artist Taliah Lempert is one of a dozen bicycle paintings on display at the Lincoln Center
"There are about a dozen pieces," Martin said. "There are some large canvas paintings and some smaller paintings on paper. Her pieces are a range of different bikes from diffrent views."
Before painting bicycles, Lempert painted the human figure. She moved to bicycles because she finds their "amazing lines and beautiful curves" inspiring. "The beauty comes from the shape of the frame and the way the individual parts make up the lines in the bike," she said.
Lempert's paintings will be on display in the Lincoln Center's Lobby Gallery Saturday through July 3.
"Someone there saw her work in a magazine and thought it would be a good way to celebrate bike month." The Lincoln Center's visual committee agreed.