Redmond Bicycle Project - Derby Days 2020 Community Activity

VALA Eastside, a local nonprofit arts organization, is partnering with the City of Redmond in 2020 to participate in Virtual Derby Days 2020 with a community activity, “Redmond Bicycle Project - A Random Act of Art.”

With everyone in quarantine, it is easy to feel disconnected from the community, and uninspired. While many things have moved online into a virtual forum—which is wonderful in its own way—virtual forums are not tangible. In a time when life itself seems unreal, a piece of tangible art can connect us in a beautiful, meaningful way. You can connect with your community by taking part in the “Redmond Bicycle Project,” a VALA Eastside, “Random Acts of Art” community activity. This activity is the brainchild of Crystal A Edwards, president of the VALA board and local area artist. With support from VALA, she created the “Redmond Bicycle Project,” for the City of Redmond to celebrate the City’s traditional event, Redmond Derby Days, which this year, has gone virtual.

This is not your typical artist call. During Derby Days 2020, the Redmond Bicycle Project is a way for community members to connect through creation, and exploration. You are encouraged to create a Penny Farthing—a symbol of Redmond, the “Bicycle Capital of the Northwest”—and display it in an area where it is visible to people outside who are 6 feet or more away. Place it in your window, in a tree in your yard, or inside your vehicle. You are also encouraged to explore your neighborhood to find as many Penny Farthings as possible.

Whether you're an explorer, creator, or both, take photos of Penny Farthings and post them online to share with other community members. What you make, or what you find, has a chance to be featured by VALA Eastside during Derby Days 2020! The following hashtags are great to use for every Penny Farthing post: #VALAEastside, #DerbyDays2020, #RedmondBicycleProject, and #RandomActsOfArt. If your post is about a Penny Farthing that you made, use: #IMadeThis, and if it's about one that you found, use: #LookWhatIFound.

“Performing a random act of art is a way to create a connection between yourself and others,” says Edwards. “It’s a tangible way to say, ‘I am here! I am living, not just surviving,’ and it's a way to help and to encourage others to do the same.”

For more information about VALA, go to valaeastside.org or follow VALA on Facebook: www.facebook.com/valaeastside.

For more information about Derby Days 2020, go to redmond.gov/1138/Derby-Days. For more information about “Redmond Bicycle Project,” and for instructions on how to make a Penny Farthing, go to valaeastside.org/redmond-bicycle-project.

VALA (Venues for Artists in the Local Area) Eastside, a non-profit 501(c)(3) arts organization, is dedicated to connecting artists to artists, artists to the community, and the community to art. VALA creates partnerships with local businesses and organizations to create non-traditional venues for artists. This allows VALA to facilitate events and programs that connect artist to artist through discussion and peer review, that connect artists to the community through art installations and showings, and that connects the community to art by inviting community members to create art alongside featured artists.