Kaleidoscycle

The everyday objects that propel our world are often taken for granted. With over two billion of them in the world today, the wire-spoked bicycle wheel is an engineering wonder hiding in plain sight. Take time to stop and appreciate the objects around you!

Stainless steel, with used bicycle wheels, colored acrylic, and glass.

$25,000 installed.

2022 - Current

"We celebrate Child Abuse Prevention Month each April with community displays of pinwheels, because pinwheels symbolize playfulness, joy and whimsy. They represent safe, healthy, happy childhoods and are the official symbol of child abuse prevention.

We now have three of these giant pinwheels installed in Chimney Park, a public, family-friendly park that mirrors the whimsy of the pinwheel!"

(excerpted from The Covington News)

Chimney Park, Covington, GA.

Watch the installation of these pinwheels!

The City of Atlanta and the Mayor's Office of Cultural Affairs commissioned dozens of these bicycle racks around Atlanta, each painted a different style by a different artist. This one is painted by Dr. ARod in the "op art" style to evoke motion out of the static piece so that it looks fast just standing still! It was inspired by Allan Peters' poster "Speed", and was hand-painted by Dr. Rodriguez. This rack was at the corner of Peachtree & Alabama Streets, just south of Five Points in downtown Atlanta. 

Unfortunately, sometime in 2023 it was damaged in a vehicle accident. The city of Atlanta removed it, and I was told that they have it in storage, where I imagine such an important relic will remain indefinitely, much like at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark.

 2022 - Current

A Child’s Voice Advocacy Center wrote on its Facbook page, “The thought behind this pinwheel symbolizes playfulness, joy, and whimsy and is entirely a symbol of child abuse prevention. ...this pinwheel, built and installed by Dr. Alex Rodriguez (Dr. ARod)”. “This pinwheel was graciously sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Monroe and will remain a symbol representing the most precious thing there is, the everlasting voice of a child.” 

(excerpted from news.monroelocal.org)

Pilot Park, Monroe, Ga.

For more details about the genesis of this sculpture, check this out!

This spinning collection of windmills made from bicycle parts is designed to celebrate the freedom of movement the bicycle provides to everyone along the Atlanta BeltLine. Permanently installed in Midtown Atlanta along the BeltLine corridor near Greenwood Avenue, Whirling Wheels consists of five individual kinetic sculptures (the largest of which is pictured here), and has been spinning in the wind for over a decade!

A series of four giant and colorful pinwheels, installed along the East Side Trail in a collaborative effort between Dr. ARod's Art and "The Knitterati" (an eclectic group of knitters and crocheters). Together they created a series of whimsical sculptures to showcase the textiles in a unique and interesting way through Dr. ARod's kinetic art. Spinning Yarns was de-installed in August of 2015 after a full year out in the weather to make room for artwork by other BeltLine artists.

A kinetic sculpture made of bicycle parts and hand made glass, installed in the lobby of Inman Park Dentistry. An original design by Dr. ARod's Art, done in collaboration with Creative Stained Glass Studio(Evergreen, CO), this piece is designed to calm and entertain with its slow, steady movement and changing patterns of light, colors, and shadows.

For more details about the genesis of this sculpture, check this out!

Dr. ARod shares his method for creating these huge pinwheels.

Installations include along the Atlanta BeltLine (2014-2017), and currently in Chimney Park (Covington, GA), and Pilot Park (Monroe, GA).

You only need a bicycle wheel, some water bottles, and tape.

Powered by the wind, this pair of bicycle-wheel windmills light up under their own power and are meant to be a symbol of the rapidly improving bicycle infrastructure in Atlanta. Two of these pieces are currently installed along the Atlanta BeltLine with views of midtown in the background. If you've never been on the BeltLine at night, it's time to take a ride along the Eastside trail! 

I share my creative and simple technique for creating durable kinetic works from bicycle wheels that can survive the weather 365 days a year!

See why this video has nearly 150,000 views!

In the late 1980's, CREST toothpaste sponsored a bicycle racing team, and now one of those CREST-branded bikes decorates the wall of Inman Park Dentistry as sculpture. The unique mounting of the frame and wheels (without the spokes to connect them), helps to create the illusion of the bike floating free of the wall.

The basics of turning a bicycle wheel into a weathervane sculpture, boiled down to the essentials.

Fifteen wheels, covered in hand-cut stained glass, and all connected together through three separate loops of bicycle chain. Driven by a hidden motor, this piece spins very slowly, all day long, creating a mesmerizing visual piece. The slow and continuous movement is what makes this sculpture so engaging. Private commission.

 A custom folk art weather vane for a dentist friend of mine. I made it as a thank you to him for selling me his business and giving me a great dental practice to build upon. Thank you Walter!  

This was a reboot of the 2014 Spinning Yarns art installation, but this time directly involving the local community in the creation of public art. On August 27th, 2016, nearly 40 BeltLine trail users of all ages left their mark on these giant pinwheels by spray-painting part of each pinwheel, resulting in unique artwork produced by the community that it serves. The sculptures were not only designed to entertain and amuse, but to make artwork with a personal connection to the BeltLine user. Some people spray-painted their initials, one couple played spray-paint tic-tac-toe, while others painted randomly. 

 This bicycle-wheel mobile hung from the ceiling above my baby's crib. A small motor for a disco-ball spins it slowly, while a lullaby plays in the background, calming the child watching the serene motion.  

A tribute to my alma-mater, Dr. ARod made this bicycle-wheel-windmill as a gift for his mother, and it has been hanging from a tree in her backyard for years. Made from an aluminum rimmed bicycle wheel, copper foil, stainless steel wire, and acrylic. 

 This privately commissioned piece was inspired by design elements that the customer brought to me: an abstract metal sun and moon sculpture on wood. But that original sculpture did not quite have the visual impact he was going for. So using those parts as inspiration, I created an original design for a kinetic sculpture that uses a bicycle-wheel as a windmill that would sit on top of a wooden post, similar to a weather vane, while still using the original sun and moon components. Because it was wind-driven, yet still had celestial theme, I titled it Aerospace. Heavily modified through the years by its owner, it now spins casually in the breeze in a California backyard. 

 A custom folk art weather vane for my father-in-law. He is a big Oklahoma Sooner fan, and I'm sure this windmill will spin for years at his home in the dry air of Phoenix. The musical sound track to the video is a song called "Soft Winds of Oklahoma" by Bill Emerson. Enjoy!

 Dr. ARod is proud to have been a resident of the quirky Atlanta neighborhood of Reynoldstown for ten years, and this double-sided sign celebrates his time there. Powered through low-voltage landscape lighting, this light automatically comes on when the sun goes down. The design is hand cut from copper foil, and double-sided.

 Made as a wedding gift for one of Dr. ARod's college roommates, this bicycle-wheel-windmill has been entertaining their family for years as it spins non-stop through the worst of Maine's weather. 

A custom piece designed for an electrical services company in Oklahoma City, where the wind sweeping down the plains will surely keep this bicycle-wheel-windmill spinning non-stop for years!  

 A gift for a friend whose family history owes a lot to the Blue Bird Bus Company, this bicycle-wheel-windmill has a clear tail-piece of acrylic, with only a simple outline in copper of that iconic Blue Bird logo. Hopefully it is still spinning along the shore of one of the Great Lakes.