Travel Photo Thursday: Say WHAT??

Today I present you with a puzzle of sorts.  What the heck is it?? And what do these things have in common? And why is it a good excuse to visit Tucson, Arizona? (BTW, this post was inspired by a post by fellow travel blogger, Jeanine Barone of J The Travel Authority. See her post on Denmark here.)

Prickly Pear Cactus
Prickly Pear Cactus, but what's it made of?

A Face, of course
A Face, of course, but made of what?
A Flower
A Flower, and no, those are not electric sockets

 

One of the Artists
One of the Artists

 

A Whatsit
A close up view of the artists's Whatsit

 

AT LONG LAST A CLUE. HERE IS THE ENTRANCE TO THE FACILITY:

Entrance to BICAS
Entrance to BICAS, Tucson, Arizona

 

Have you figured out what this is all about yet?  Go ahead and discuss in the comment section, and I’ll come back there with more information. (And by the way, if you had clicked on that link to J, The Travel Authority in the first paragraph, you’d be WAY ahead!!)

This is my (almost) weekly contribution to Travel Photo Thursday.  You can see more puzzling, beautiful, exotic and ordinary photos by going to the mother ship--Budget Travelers Sandbox.

All photos here are my property–that means copyrighted–so please don’t use without permission. Unless you’re from BICAS, in which case you can do anything you want with anything you want.

 

 

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About Vera Marie Badertscher

A freelance writer who loves to travel. When she is not traveling she is reading about travel. When she is not reading or traveling, she is sharing with the readers of A Traveler's Library, or recreating her family's past at Ancestors In Aprons . She has written for Reel Life With Jane, Life is a Trip and other websites. Also co-author of a biography, Quincy Tahoma, The Life and Legacy of a Navajo Artist. Contact Vera Marie by e-mail.

17 thoughts on “Travel Photo Thursday: Say WHAT??

  1. Love this! Before I read any of the comments I was thinking something to do with wheels frames. Bicycle parts makes perfect sense. What a fun place to visit.

  2. Nice and cool kind of art..I love it!I want to visit this place to see if how they doing this recycle bike..

  3. These are cool art and a great way to recycle bicycle parts. Looks like a very interesting place to visit. The Face looks very robotic.

  4. I love creative art like this and would definitely visit BICAS in Tucson. Love the use of the bike pedals for the flower. By the way, I was inspired by you for my TPT contribution today.

  5. What beautifully repurposed bicycle parts! I really like all the colors in your photos. BICAS sounds like an interesting organization.

    1. Dick: Not surprised you didn’t see it. BICAS is definitely not on the regular tourist routes. It is in what is known as the Warehouse District on the northwest corner of downtown, and BICAS entrance is in the back of a building. When I took these photos for an article I was writing several years ago, the warehouse was threatened with destruction, but it is still there. It used to be beside the railroad tracks and they showed me the still functional elevator that was used to lift goods up from their subterranean location to the track for loading. The Warehouses were bought by the state for a freeway that didn’t happen. The state continues to rent them to artists.

  6. These look very cool! It’s amazing how an artist can take one thing and make it look like something completetly different and sometimes even really beautiful.

  7. Bicycle part sculptures are lovely. Unfortunately, my previous three bikes have been stolen so my supply of materials is seriously lacking.

    1. Is the BIKAS you’ve heard of the same as the BICAS in Tucson? I promised to talk more about it,so here’s a bit. The main purpose of BICAS is to train people to repair their own bikes and to recycle (as it were) used bikes. People who want to buy a bike, can pay for it in labor at the shop. (more later about the art work)

        1. Okay, time to talk a little more about BICAS.
          You can learn more and see more art at BICAS website ( I did not post the link in the article, because it is a total giveaway of the guessing game.)
          I first noticed the jewelry (!) some artists make of bike parts for sale at the 4th Avenue Street Fair. That’s a big festival/street fair that happens twice a year on a street near the University of Arizona.
          A few years later I was assigned an article about BICAS and learned that the jewelry and art is sold not only at 4th Avenue Street fair, but also in their yearly spring fund raiser. All money raised goes back into keeping the enterprise running. Anyone who wants to can come to BICAS and use the spare parts to create art.
          Like Andy Warhol’s soup can paintings, this art makes you look twice at ordinary things around you.

  8. bicycle parts! what an interesting place to get creative inspiration. I’d already read Jeanine Barone’s article as I am a regular reader of J the Travel Authorty, but your photos put bicycles in a whole new light.

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