Bicycle 1935 - 1942

This is John Cutting's drawing of a bicycle, made with graphite and watercolor. The bicycle’s form emerges through the artist's hand, reflecting the materials and industrial processes that shaped its original construction. Notice the intricate details of the spoked wheels and the metal framework. These are rendered with a delicacy that belies the bicycle's functional purpose. The artist captures the machine's elegance and its integration of various materials: wood for the wheels, and metal for the frame, seat, and handlebars. Each component showcases the labor and skill involved in its manufacture, from the shaping of the wooden spokes to the casting and assembly of the metal parts. Cutting's close observation transforms this everyday object into a subject of artistic contemplation. He asks us to consider the bicycle not merely as a means of transportation but as a testament to human ingenuity and the beauty inherent in functional design. It prompts reflection on the labor, politics, and consumption intertwined with its production.