Whilst on residency in Bangalore, I produced several works responding to the traffic situation; a bicycle with a steering wheel mounted on it (including a functioning horn!), a bicycle bell installed on an SUV, and a performance in which I ‘rode’ through the city on an exercise bike mounted on the back of a small truck.
Practically I initially found it difficult to move in the city. Soon I really began to notice the lack of physical activity. I simply couldn't walk - there are often no pedestrian crossings or pavements, and walking becomes a chore, being constantly honked by cars and dodging cars when crossing the street. There are few cyclists in the city, and most Bangaloreans I met were shocked at the idea of cycling, or told me they used to do it as a child.
The works also respond to the way the roads themselves feature such a mix of transport. Lanes are not recognised, and motorbikes, buses, cars and taxis; push carts, bicycles and people weave in and out between each other. Perhaps my transport mash ups are a response to the way the different forms of transport on the streets mix.
Artists working on residencies always find themselves in a dichotomy. On the one hand they are in a new context and need to respond to that; on the other they need to be careful not to make overly ambitious claims about understanding that context after a short time there. I see this as a scale upon which artists on residencies work, and there is no simple answer; it needs to be negotiated.
