WE RIDERS DOCUMENTARY EXHIBIT

The WE Riders documentary installation presented the projects components in an interactive format. Viewers could explore printouts of all of the weblog entries, see our GPS routes and read all of the collected surveys. The only piece that we left out was our tandem; we still needed to ride! So we presented a full-scale cardboard mock-up.

Some special features of the installation: a 10 foot table in the shape of Oakland fabricated by Bruce Douglas, detailed analysis of the surveys created by Jason MacCannell, PhD, and documentary footage of our rides filmed by Erin Stamos.

As part of the exhibit, Jason gave a very informative presentation about his analysis and findings concerning the surveys. The event was well-attended; participates engaged in a lively discussion about the intersections of art and science.

We want to give a special thanks to Pro Arts staff and volunteers who helped to make this show into a reality. And thanks again to our master documenter, Pamela Palma.

WE Riders Analysis Report, Dr. Jason MacCannell

Excerpts from the Report's Introduction

"What have the WE Riders done? Though it sounds like a humorous accusation, the question is a serious one. Officially, the answer is “art”: arts funding supports it; art venues host it. While it is not a set of paintings on the wall, the documentation here fits the conventional definition of art more closely than some “conceptual” art. Here is a display, some distinctive patterns of visual design, and even a great deal of drawing, albeit not by the artists. If the artists themselves had produced the bulk of the works on display—nearly two hundred small sheets that include both drawings and writings—no one could question the “artistic” nature of the project. But the work is instead a collaboration between the artists and members of the public selected more or less haphazardly.

In this sense the project is more like social science than “art.” Instead of depicting their ostensible subjects, the sometimes elusive realms of West and East Oakland, the WE Riders mounted a survey, collecting eighty-one maps as well as a large volume of commentary. Every stage of the project has been lavishly documented, on paper, on a weblog, in digital photography, on video, and even in GPS point data from the rides. As a social scientist who met them quite by accident, I admit I was initially fooled by what Donna Haraway might call their scientific “drag.” It took some investigation to discover that their approach was entirely artistic.

… But my purpose here is not to judge the quality of the art, nor analyze the critique or celebration of science that some might see embedded in it. Rather, I intend to push the “science” of the WE Riders project as far as possible, treating their data as data, searching it for anything suggestive of a pattern or correspondences among its elements. In doing so I am quite conscious of blurring the boundary between art and science even further. By not asking a research question—“Where is East/West Oakland?” being too nebulous to count—the WE Riders have ensured that no answer will be found. There is no effect whose cause is sought, nor any stakeholders waiting to applaud or defy a politically important result. In the end the respondents became the scientists, the ones proferring hypotheses and presenting evidence.

… The portrait of Oakland and specifically these neighborhoods that emerges in the survey—a city divided by freeways, a city divided by a lake, a place with multitudinous pasts carried in the hearts of its residents, a place where the future seems to rumble like an angry faultline under the surface, a set of stops on the BART lines, a place that business and government desperately want changed, a place with Victorian houses and taco stands, a place where west is north and east is south—is a portrait as variable as the city itself that mere statistics could not achieve."

WE RIDERS IN THE NEWS!

WE Riders has gotten the attention of several local journalists. The result: two very interesting articles in Oakland publications. Check out Matt Dibble's review of one of our West Oakland adventures in the Oakland Magazine.

You can also read Cecily Burt's timely article in the Oakland Tribune. She promoted our project in the 'Eye on the Arts' feature the day before our documentary installation opened at Pro Arts. The articles have brought in many people to see the show. In fact, the articles have encouraged people to visit our show who have never set foot in a gallery before!

DOCUMENTARY EXHIBIT, SEPT. 9 - OCT. 8, 2006

You Are Invited!

We are in high gear now, planning for our upcoming installation at Pro Arts Gallery, a long-time Oakland non-profit arts institution. They have been promoting local artists' work since the 1970s. They are located in Jack London Square (550 Second Street, near Cost Plus). We are very excited that they will be hosting our exhibit, which will document all aspects of the WE Riders's adventures. Plus, we are very pleased to present video footage by Erin Stamos, who has joined nearly all of our rides this past summer. In addition, geographer Jason MacCannell will present a fascinating analysis of the nearly 200 surveys that we collected.

The show will run from Saturday, September 9 through Sunday, October 8. Some special events to note (all are FREE!):

• On 9/14 from 6:30-8:00PM,, we will present an off-site performance at the Yerba Beuna Center for the Arts in San Francisco. This performance is part of the Sampling Oakland exhibit that's up right now. We will be sharing the stage that night with several other very interesting Oakland artists. This event is curated by Sarah Lockhart from 21 Grand.
  

• We will give a presentation about our work on Saturday, 9/23 from 1-3PM at Pro Arts.

• And finally, join us in celebrating the project at a First Friday closing event at Pro Arts on Friday, 10/6 from 6-8PM.

If you have missed the chance so far to participate in our Where is West Oakland / Where is East Oakland survey, this is your opportunity! We are eager to continue collecting input during the installation.

We are sorry to say that for now, our rides are over. But stay tuned for future events...

GPS ROUTE INFORMATION

We have been tracking all of our rides with a Garmin GPS so that we have accurate information about where we have traveled in the city. Here is a collection of all of our rides. We have also posted each route as the final entry for each ride's journal. You'll notice that there are no route maps for rides #1, #2 and #6: that is because we only collected surveys during these rides and didn't travel about the city.

Once we learn how, we will download our GPS info onto Google maps; then our routes will be overlaid onto a Satellite image of the city. If anyone has this skill and would like to help us with this process, please email us at: marksearch@sbcglobal.net. Thanks!

GROUP RIDE WEST: AUGUST 5, 2006

The Riders:

Saturday was the perfect day for our second and final group ride to West Oakland: once the early morning fog was wisped away, the air was cool and the sun was warm. When we arrived at City Hall at 10AM, there was already a small cluster of riders gathered. We were joined by a newly formed bike team comprised of lawyers who work in downtown Oakland, a father-son bike duo (James, at 4 years, was our youngest rider!), two women who brought their small dogs along to ride, a city cartographer, and several other Oakland folks. All together, a diverse dozen made up our West Oakland group. We were very pleased with the turnout.

Before we took off, we spoke with everyone about the project, had people fill out surveys and answered questions. Some had found out about the project from our flyers, others from various websites or word of mouth.

Most people expressed a similar reason for joining the ride: to get to know West Oakland better. One rider said he came “to learn more about the city where I work.” For many, West Oakland is an area beyond their direct experience. One woman who joined our ride recently moved to West Oakland and plans to start an after-school art program. She wanted to find out where the neighborhood kids hang out.

The Route:

Once again, we planned this ride as a ‘best of’ tour, sampling some of the places we most enjoyed visiting on our previous West Oakland rides. From downtown, we rode on 14^th Street, making a stop at the Ebony Art Museum, then on to Mandela Parkway to see the newly developed median park, ending up at the Mandela Farmers’ Market. From there we toured some local farms and ended up at the Pretty Lady for a delicious home grown lunch.

At the Mandela Farmers' Market:

We hung out at the market for a little while; people enjoyed meeting the vendors and sampling some of the delicious and very locally grown (West Oakland) produce.

We had an interesting conversation with Reggie, who met the last time we were at the market. He told us that this area of West Oakland is known as “Low Bottom”: “This is West Oakland, but people in the neighborhood, call it Low Bottom. The Low Bottom, they stereotype it, you know, as an area where there’s violence and corruption. But it’s really not like that here. People think the Low Bottom is bad, but it’s a good place to live.” He has lived here for many years. Reggie also told us that “People don’t really know West Oakland ‘til they come to West Oakland.” You can’t know a place from the outside.

One guy at the market proudly showed us his rig: he had decked out his rickshaw with a full sound system. He told us how he would modify our rig so that we could always travel with tunes. We were very impressed!

Riding in the Hood:

After the Mandela Market, we made our way to City Slicker Farms on Center and Peralta Streets. First we detoured to an OBUGS butterfly garden. There we met a neighbor who has been involved with bringing sorely needed community services to West Oakland. She has started a medical clinic and also, more recently, she has initiated a nutrition program at corner liquor stores. She teaches them how to use a blender to make nutritious and healthy fruit smoothies—this is in an effort to bring healthy food into the neighborhood. While West Oakland has been redlined by supermarkets, there are liquor stores on nearly every corner.

Standing in front of this neighbor’s home was a piece of indigenous sculpture: a local artist has carved portraits out of neighborhood tree stumps.

City Slicker Farm:

People really enjoyed visiting City Slicker Farms: it was full of activity that afternoon. Lots of folks were shopping from the vegetable cart, some farmers were composting, and another was working with the bees. We spent time walking around the farm and talking with neighbors. This was also a good opportunity for riders in the group to talk to each other about their local neighborhood concerns and interests.

We also had the honor of giving this little girl her first ever ride on a bike!

Next Stop: The Pretty Lady

Most people peeled off from the group at this point. But the adventure wasn’t over yet! We stopped at the Pretty Lady for a well-deserved lunch. Over sandwiches and potato salad, we took the chance to get to know some of the riders better. One member of the group lives in a well-established co-housing building at the Swan’s Market. It was interesting to hear about her experiences living in downtown. She has opted for a carless lifestyle and it is challenging for her to satisfy her daily needs locally. While Brown’s goal has been to move folks on into to downtown, the area is really not able to fully accommodate a self-sufficient urban lifestyle. Hungering for a sense a local community, she was very taken with the Pretty Lady and decided that it would become her routine breakfast joint.

Low Bottom:

We decided to visit Lobot Gallery on our way home. Created in 2003, it is a relatively new artist-run space, named after the Low Bottom. We had an interesting discussion with one of the resident artists about the space, their mission and philosophy. One of their goals is to provide affordable studio space to local and international emerging artists. They are also striving to be a part of the local neighborhood by providing classes in music, performance and art for local kids. They also make sure that all of their events are locally publicized. While many artists are moving to West Oakland for the (relatively) cheap warehouse space, they have a reputation for separating themselves from the community. The folks at Lobot want to counter this tendency.

We were shown an artifact of one of their recent events: the barbeque bicycle. They told us they ride to the Korean supermarket on 25^th and Telegraph, stoke up the grill, and by the time they arrive back at the studio, yum, yum, yum, the chow is done!

The End:

On our way home, we wove through an area of new infill condos (which seem to feed many people’s perception of the gentrification of West Oakland). Then we rode under an amazing maze of multi-tiered freeways---not a spot we would like to be when the next ‘big one’ comes along. We touched on a corner of Emeryville and then we headed back to our neighborhood via 45^th Street. We weren’t sure when we were leaving West Oakland and entering East Oakland. Maybe, as one person we surveyed had commented, “It’s all a state of mind.”

GPS Route:

GROUP RIDE EAST: JULY 30, 2006

The Riders:

Uncertain as to who or how many people would show up for our first group ride, we were pleasantly surprised when three cyclists pulled up in front of City Hall at the same time we did. As we were talking, a few more people rode up. All tallied we had seven people on this ride; we were mighty pleased with the turn out (and we only knew one of the other riders!).

We talked to folks about the project, our plans for the ride and their reasons for wanting to come out with us. A few of the people on the ride were newly transplanted to Oakland and wanted to learn more about the city. Another rider lived in East Oakland, but she wanted to explore other areas in the region and learn about some new bike routes. In general, everyone was up for an adventure on this beautiful Sunday morning. We redesigned our survey form to better understand the impact of the ride on the group. We asked people to answer some questions before and after the ride. At the end of the ride, one member of the group remarked, “Wow, East Oakland is closer than I thought it was!”

Group Ride Route:

We thought of this ride as a 'best of' our East Oakland trips: we rode around Lake Merritt, up East 15^th Street to the Sunday Fruitvale Farmers’ Market. The round-trip route was just over three flat miles. We rode at a leisurely pace, stopping along the way to point out some of our favorite houses and buildings. The group was very eager and interested; they all answered passers-by as they asked about our sign! Here are some photos of our ride from City Hall to the Fruitvale Farmers' Market:

We stopped at the half-way point to see how all of our riders were holding up. We took a short conversation break, and then continued on our way.

It was great to come across this small sidewalk garden full of beautiful flowering plants. The local community had decided to green up their sidewalk in a two block area. Within the plants were signs that said: "These flowers were planted to make these streets better for children who live & walk here. PLEASE PROTECT THEM."

Our friend Stew found us as we were riding along (he lives in East Oakland...) and joined us for part of the ride. He shared with us some bike stories; he rides from East Oakland to Palo Alto every day to teach. Before he had to leave us and ride back home, he filled out a survey:

The market was very busy on this Saturday morning. Our group riders walked around, explored the plazas and met with some of the vendors. We told them about our first experience at the Fruitvale Village Plaza, when the security guard told us to leave the plaza. This led to an interesting discussion about public space, or the lack of them, in the contemporary urban fabric. An architect/urban planner team called REbar is creating an excellent project in downtown SF about 'privately owned public spaces.'

We spoke with the guy selling hand-made crafts and clothing. He was very interested in our tandem bike; one of his children is blind, and he wants to find a way for them to bike ride together. A tandem would be the perfect solution! He described East Oakland as "sometimes hard core" and West Oakland as "a good place to live.'

Lunch on International Boulevard:

On our return home we stopped at Mi Grullense, a delicious and very popular taco truck on International Boulevard and 29^th. We decided to include a lunch stop; since many people told us that taco trucks were an East Oakland signature, we thought this would be a fitting place. No one was disappointed! During our half-hour stop, we saw loads of people, some in their Sunday best, stop for a yummy taco or torta. We checked out a virtual authority on the subject, www.tacotrucks.net, to read reviews of local hot spots. As it turns out, Mi Grullense is their taco truck of the month. Look here for more information on restaurants and taco trucks on the Comida Corridor (International Boulevard).

Everyone parted ways after lunch, with a full belly and a pocket full of new experiences. It was great for us to share some of what we have learned on our rides. We also enjoyed talking about many aspects of Oakland city life from art to bike lanes, food to politics, and the meaning of public space. Thanks to all who came ‘east’ with us!

GPS Route:

HEADING EAST: JULY 21, 2006

Our Last Solo Ride:

Our last ride was on one of those unusually blazing late July days (where is the fog when you need it??). The change in our local weather has really made us think hard about globally shifting weather patterns. At least by riding our tandem we are not contributing to global warming and we hope, by using the city’s bike lanes, we can promote more cycling. It would be great if Oakland became known as a cycle-friendly city. We ironically talked about this as we rode through Broadway Auto Row, Oakland’s car dealership district. One ray of hope among all of these vehicles was a VW ad promoting new bio-diesel cars.

We started out early so that we would not wilt under the sun. One of our main goals on this ride was to publicize our upcoming group rides during which we plan to show off some of the city’s bike lanes and also lead folks to some of the interesting sites that we have found. So that we could reach the widest possible audience, we had our flyers translated into Spanish and Chinese (many thanks to Oakland’s Equal Access Office!). We distributed close to 1000 flyers to city farmers’ markets, local public library branches, city rec centers, cafes and bike shops.

Choosing Our Route:

While we were deciding on our route at City Hall, we spoke to a few people. It still surprises us, after many weeks of hanging out at Frank Ogawa Plaza, how eager and curious people are. We assumed that during the week business folks would breeze on by us with only maybe a slight glance. We spoke at length with one woman who was very excited about our project and extremely pro-Oakland. She was glad that we were doing something “that would make people really think about our city.” In her survey, she stated: “Oakland’s people all feel like extended family!”

It would be impossible for us to ride up in the hilly area of what some have called the ‘true’ East Oakland: our trailer weighs about 80 pounds. That’s a lot of extra weight to tow! We opted instead for some moderate hills: we would aim for the Laurel District. We hadn’t yet ridden on MacArthur Boulevard, a major city bike lane. On many surveys, this street was indicated as both a border and landmark of East Oakland.

Thanks Pam!

Images of the two of us on this ride were taken by our faithful photographer, Pam Palma.

Distancing From East Oakland:

We first stopped on Park Boulevard to drop off some flyers at the Francis Smith Rec Center (we had visited there on our June 22^nd ride) to invite some kids to come on our group ride. Then we headed up on Park to MacArthur. Before we got too far, our sign caught the attention of a guy crossing the street from the new Artists’ Café. When we told him what we were up to, he stopped right there in the middle of the street to talk to us about his confusions about what is East Oakland. According to him, this area is really East Oakland, but most people say it is part of the Lake Merritt District.

In our conversations we have found that a lot of people who live in what many consider to be East Oakland identify with a small neighborhood or community: they say they don't live in East Oakland. It seems to us like people distance themselves from the name East Oakland. And this may be because East Oakland is generally negatively characterized as unsafe and dangerous. A recent New York Times article about crime in East Oakland describes a new policy that the police are now implementing to help repeat offenders turn their lives around:
“There will be enticements in Oakland, not just threats. The authorities will offer social services, including job training, help with substance abuse and educational opportunities to help increase the odds that suspects do not return to the criminal world. Such services are already offered to offenders, but Operation Cease-Fire will make them much more readily available.”

Read here for an incisive criticism of Mayor Brown’s track record in dealing with Oakland’s violent crime.

Below is a pretty disturbing map showing where murders have taken place in Oakland (March, 2006). According to the SF Chronicle article, most of the homocides have taken place in East Oakland: "The slayings happened from North Oakland to the San Leandro border, leaving virtually no part of the city unscathed but for the Oakland hills and the neighborhoods surrounding Lake Merritt -- although that area has seen a rash of robberies that have some residents on edge." The number of homocide victims is now at 89 and sadly, every one out of three who has been murdered is a youth under the age of twenty.

MacArthur Boulevard:

Riding on MacArthur is constantly interesting: the streetscape is ever-changing. We rode by small neighborhood homes, the freeway, local shops and a soon-to-be cut down forest (to make way for more development). Considering that MacArthur is a major thorough-fare, it is pretty pleasant to ride on. MacArthur runs from West Oakland through these neighborhoods (from west to east): Longfellow, Pill Hill, Grand Lake, Haddon Hill, Bella Vista, Dimond, Laurel, Millsmont, Eastmont, Castlemont, Las Palmas and into San Leandro. A group of folks from Mills College just completed a year-long photo-bio of MacArthur Boulevard; look here for more info.

After we had done some serious climbing up MacArthur, we stopped at a corner liquor store for some tree shade and a cool drink. As we were resting, a man saw our sign and was pretty upset by the question; he saw only one side. As he walked into the store, he angrily shook his head saying, “Where’s West Oakland? Don’t be bringing that shit here.” His were among the very few hostile comments and reactions we have received in nearly three months of riding.

Visiting Dimond Park:

We decided to make our way to Dimond Park; we figured the creek there would offer a cool and relaxing spot to hang out for awhile. We were hoping that there would be lots of kids there to talk to.

We rode off of MacArthur down on to Canon Street, a small and winding road banked with lots of trees. As we pulled up into the park’s entrance, we were greeted by a group of excited three and four year-olds—they had never seen a tandem bike before. The two adults with the kids were very curious about our signs. They definitely agreed that we were not in East Oakland but in Central Oakland. They said that East Oakland started after Fruitvale. It is interesting that not too many folks have talked about Central Oakland. The two bus drivers we spoke to in West Oakland (May 31^st ride) told us that downtown was actually Central Oakland. The term ‘Central’ seems to imply a kind of neutrality.

Dimond Park is a pocket of green idyllic calm. Nestled in the Sausal Creek canyon, the park is mostly rolling green hills. Centrally situated is a lovely swimming pool and near to that is a newly renovated playground. The park is named after Hugh Dimond, a Gold Rusher. Read here for a history of the park’s development and some information about Sausal Creek: “When one visits the park today, there is a small, difficult-to-read plaque that sets forth a bit of local history. According to the plaque, the utility building across from the restrooms has incorporated adobe bricks from the 1897 Dimond cottage, described as a "playhouse" for the Dimond children, although a brief history on an Oakland Parks Department map references the adobe bricks as being from the Peralta home.” Up until very recently, the park was graced by an ancient oak tree. The tree was unfortunately cut down since its core was fairly rotten; the city was worried about being sued.