Roadsworth — Montreal, Canada

“I would like to design ‘bike highways’ in cities whereby entire streets are dedicated to bike and pedestrian traffic only. I would like to participate in the glorification of bike culture in the same way that big advertising glorifies car culture. There is already a pilot project underway in Montreal, Canada, whereby several streets are being reserved for such an experiment. I would like to see this experiment expanded to other cities around the world and I would like to participate in making the idea more appealing. I think it is the job of art and environmental design in general to make unorthodox ideas more acceptable and feasible.”

Roadsworth began painting the streets of Montreal in the Autumn of 2001. Initially motivated by a desire for more bike paths in the city and a questioning of “car culture” in general, he continued to develop a language around street markings and other elements of the urban landscape using a primarily stencil-based technique. In 2004, he was arrested for his nocturnal activities and charged with 53 counts of mischief. Despite the threat of heavy fines and a criminal record, he received a relatively lenient sentence that he attributes in part to the public support he received subsequent to his arrest. The NFB documentary Roadsworth: Crossing The Line, produced in 2007, chronicles this period of his life. Since then, Roadsworth has continued to work in both painted and sculptural media, showcasing his work in festivals, galleries and in city streets around the world.