Bike auction marks last day of festival

Elgin's Bicycles on Parade public art project rode to the finish line Sunday at the second annual Art and Soul on the Fox festival.

In the sweltering Sunday afternoon heat, Elgin City Councilman and professional auctioneer John Prigge auctioned off ten bicycles decorated by Elgin community organizations.

Altogether, Elgin groups personalized 30 bikes that have been on display throughout the city and at the Gail Borden Public Library during the summer. More than 12,000 people cast their votes for the best bike. The top ten vote-getters were featured in Sunday's live auction. The other 20 were bid on in a silent auction.

Auction proceeds benefited the Elgin Community Network, which awards grants for community improvement projects in the city.

Few of the bikes fetched more than $100, but Art and Soul coordinator Sigi Psimenos said it was more about promoting public art than fundraising.

"It's just a way for different community organizations to get involved in a fun art project and raise some money," she said.

Bikes were divided into two categories: ridable and unridable. Among the entries in the former category was a "toy machine" bike studded with matchbox cars, green Army men and a rubber snake.

In the latter class was the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Reader," a bike that had been disassembled and reassembled to look like Donatello, the children's action hero known for his affinity for machines.

Karen Reynolds built the ninja reader with help of drawings by artist Derek Bedard - and Reynolds was the winning bidder for her piece on Sunday.

"I couldn't not let him get bid on," Reynolds said. "I put too much work into him."

The Bikes on Parade project was a continuation of an annual public art project that invites community groups to decorate mundane items. Last year, it was Rain Barrels on Parade. Next year, it will be Adirondack chairs.

Sunday's auction took place among a sprawling festival that featured 80 artists and artisans as well as music and dance performances throughout the weekend. With an estimated 8,000 to 12,000 people stopping by Saturday, filling Elgin's downtown restaurants and businesses, Psimenos judged the event a success.

"It was fantastic," she said. "There's no other way to describe it."