Cachet Racer

This project is the culmination of years of scheming and months of work.

  What makes it most significant in reference to the rest of my sculpture portfolio is that all of the body work was formed by hand from flat sheets of aluminum, not assembled from found forms. The project began with a donated, not running, 1979 Honda CX500 motorcycle.  I immediately set to work stripping off all of the bikes “identity” in the form of body work and moulded plastic.  A good deal of time and effort was invested into learning the techniques required to replace these elements with those of my own design.  Once this was achieved the mechanical components were all refurbished, repaired, repainted, or replaced depending on their individual need. My goal with this project was to produce a fully functional motorcycle that was “Classic, without being nostalgic”.  I wanted a break from the murky purpose of producing art, a beautiful machine that I could use, and the development of some new skills that would inform future projects. I’m very pleased with the results, and could not have achieved them without the constant support of my friends Jason Anderson (who consulted with me almost daily on the nuances of motorcycle maintenance and design) and Wendell Jones (who supplied a good deal of spare parts and wisdom along the way). For those wondering, “Cache Racer” is a pun on “Cafe Racer” style motorcycles.

Every element was found — scrap yards, second-hand stores, dumpsters — then cleaned, stripped, sorted and rebuilt. Found aluminum is TIG-welded and sanded seamless; nothing is cast. The electronics are salvaged from consumer devices, repaired and rewired so the piece does something when you touch it.