Matt Urlaub won't let me take his picture, which is actually kind of appropriate.
For months, he was the mystery artist behind two pieces of bicycle art that popped up along Main Street.
When I finally got a tip from a gentleman in-the-know, I caught up with the anonymous designer behind the unsigned installations. Turns out, the Kansas City Art Institute student has created plenty of other cycling art around town.
Urlaub isn't a Kansas City native, and he's not a long-time cyclist. Growing up in Omaha, he was into skateboarding -- until he broke his femur and his parents put the ax on that punk rock activity. Two years ago, he moved to Kansas City to attend the Art Institute and took up cycling, mainly for the convenience. But two-wheeling transportation grew on him, to the point that cycling became the focus of his school work.
Urlaub studies graphic design, but not in the standard sense of sitting in front of a computer all day. To him, graphic design is about conveying a message and sometime the message is the medium. "For my subject matter, that's the environment, out in the streets," he says. Since late last year he's been leaving his mark on the pavement and in print. "I'm really just taking advantage of what I can get away with," he says with a smile.
His first project was in October. Struck by how few bike lanes criss-cross Kansas City, Urlaub hooked up some paint cans to the back of some old bikes, allowing the color to drip down on rollers attached to the wheels. "So the wheel starts leaving a trail and the translation is where bikes ride, not necessarily a lane, but giving the sense that we belong on the road just as much as everyone else," he says. Only once did he and his friends catch flack from the authorities. "We were going down Broadway and this fire engine came up behind us at a red light and started flashing its lights at us," he says. "So we kind of ran away through some alleys." Important to note: the paint washes off.
Next was the LOOK bike at 43rd and Main. "The look bike was meant to inform drivers to look out for bicyclists and, at the same time, be placed in strategic areas where cycling is most prominent," he says. He crafted the letters with stuff he found lying around: tape, foam core, spray paint, zip ties. The winter elements ate it up. But the response was so positive, he's making a sturdier version, with metal bike parts and precise welding.
He works in smaller mediums, too. He created the "Fast Friday" fliers for the monthly ride down to the Crossroads art openings. He's the guy behind the great Critical Mass calendar, with all the ride dates for 2010, too.
For Valentines Day, he was feeling romantic. Maybe you saw one of these (in red, of course) at a local coffee shop?When the weather started to warm, he put together another installation for the Main Street intersection. The blue billboard with bike wheels played on the popular "zero-per-gallon" imagery. But he added his own advice at the bottom. "I put that little 'Good Times' thing to show people, yeah, this is something to enjoy and not be like, 'Oh, I hate gas prices.' You can ride for free." It quickly succumbed to the wind, but Urlaub's coming up with a new plan. The night before I visited him, he and his roommate had covered the top of their Chinese take-out boxes with schematics, making the sign more aero-dynamic. Stay tuned.
He's got more fliers in the works, too, like a series using animals. He finished a bear riding a bike with the word "Hibernation" crossed out across the top. Then there's this one, reminding cyclist to pedal responsibly. "Hopefully, people are tying things together," he says of his urban design artifacts floating around town. He's still finalizing the name of the project, the logo and the colors. "City Cycles" was a little too corporate so he went with "Ride Your Bike," instead. Draped across an entire wall of his apartment, a canvas is writ large with that slogan. He intends to set up a bike wheel that will spin through a platter of paint and splatter the gigantic sign. His current body of work will be on display at his senior show in May. In the meantime, he's happy to work on other cyclists' artistic experiments. Just let him know what's on your mind. "If you have an idea to implement or you want to be part of it, I'm open to anything right now," he says. "Or if you just want to go for a bike ride with someone, I'm down."E-mail rideyourbikekc@yahoo.com.
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Rad! That the $0.00 9/10ths would be based on my sticker, by the way. Excited to see Matt's take on it. :)
too bad he's a plagiarist. he doesn't ride his bike and knows nothing about KC. go home hipster
Being a fellow student of Matt's, I can tell you that he is a very talented graphic designer, and a verrry adamant bike rider, riding much more than anyone else I know! It's silly how many assumptions are being made about him based solely on this article. I hope you can realize that he's only trying to help in an area that he's truly truly passionate about, and people should celebrate that!
Hahahahaha I can't believe someone is being so ignorant and pathetic while trying to bash Matt's beautiful and well thought efforts to create change and promote a better bicycle community in KC. Not only is it counterproductive and embarrassing on this idiot's part, but it reassures us (as graphic designers) that some people will never get it. The anonymous blogger probably never even went to college and clearly knows nothing about visual advocacy!
Keep on doing what you are doing Matt! Your commitment to this issue and your design skills are inspiring to me and the rest of our classmates!
Much love.
Matt's making an impact on "whocares" because whocares is taking the time to respond. Whocares also has seen matt's work as he himself noted, so whocares DOES CARE about this project, just not in the positive way.
Matt, a lot of people in KC know about your project, and that's pretty sweet because this city isn't small. I hear people all over midtown talking about your project.
Not every response will be positive and Whocares has been stressing that and overdoing that while at it, BUT it's the talk of the town.
I think the majority of the talk around town is more fascination at your work which also puts bicycle riding on their mind, which is great. Even if people don't start riding a bicycle right away, I think over time, your messages will really sink in. It just takes time, it'll happen! You're on the Pitch!!!
Hmmm,
sounds like someone is jealous. If Matt wasn't making an impact, he wouldn't have an article written about him.
Whocares' comments are so overtly bitter that I cannot help but wonder if some event in the past has made him resentful of designers and/or students. Seems like you're just venting pent-up frustrations on Matt.
But both of you obviously feel strongly for this topic. I'd love to see something positive come out of all this negativity. Maybe a design showdown?
whocares sounds like a bitter person who holds a grudge against matt for being a student. I also think he feels threatened.
However, I think matt's efforts are a starting point for community interaction and awareness within the metro area. A dialogue seems to have already begun...
no its not a track bike because its a road bike conversion. road bike fixed wheel.learn something.
"Just trying to get more people to come out and experience something new because some people actually don't know about it "
and they will continue not to know if the flier is only out the day before it happens.
(^^^constructive criticism) ;)
i can guarantee you don't ride your bike very far judging by your setup. you probably just do tricks in the parking lot.
what change are you trying make?
riding a bike doesn't cost money for gas.hmm i wonder who doesnt know that.
the look bike was located where few bikes actually travel(and thats not because of traffic but because its not a very efficient route considering the landscape.)
well i guess your failing at being a graphic designer because you wrote a lame comment and you have yet to make change. do you know Missouri's bike laws? maybe you should do some research and try to get cyclist more rights. http://mobikefed.org/statutes....
that might help your^^^
was this constructive enough for you?
LAME is spelled L A M E as in your lame.
who cares anyways? Its not a track bike because I don't ride it on a track. I ride it in the streets where I use it the most. Your right, critical mass is bigger than me and thats a good thing. Just trying to get more people to come out and experience something new because some people actually don't know about it and for those who do, seeing it promoted in a flyer might get them to come out again. These projects are meant to engage the community and create a greater awareness in the community on some level. I appreciate the feed back but can I get some constructive criticism instead of your pessimistic view on my efforts to create change. I hope my ideas do spread to Omaha and beyond. KC needs work and so do a lot of other places. And my goal as a graphic designer is to create that change, not to put something in my portfolio or write a lame comment.
i only saw the black february critical mass poster, not calendar (i think everyone knows it the last friday of the month) and was out just a few days before. the fast friday flyer came out the day before and matt didn't even ride it. no one sees his stuff except for the look bike shit and it is around main and 43rd. not many people want to ride around there. bogus.
haha your name is SkinnyJeans and you called me a hipster. i bet your Matt reading your article and comments looking for some kind of gratification.haha how lame. maybe stop being so much into yourself and try to be a part of what you claim to help.
nope just pointing out the need to know.
where are these calenders and fliers. ive seen a critical mass poster the day before its onset.whoever didnt already know about it would not have seen it and had time to plan for it. it was poorly designed too. the needed info was in like 6 pt font.
his bike is not a track bike.
critical mass and fast Friday are much bigger than him, actually the whole Kansas city bike community is over his head. he is not in any way involved with community but instead just personal works to build his portfolio. his generic facts and slogans don't have a value in any local sense.
What is he going to do when he graduates? move back to Omaha and be involved with the bike community there? i am doubtful.
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