As part of their curation of 100% Design this year, Jamie from Jam asked a bunch of his friends if they could contribute in some way. Amongst those asked was cycling obsessive Richard from SUSD who put two and two together: 100% Design is in the “Brompton” area, and there exists a famous foldable bike of the same name. And that is how the “Brompton Bicycle Tour” was born.

The Bromton Bicycle Tour starts outside Earl’s Court 2, and is a free tour of galleries along the design trail and around the Brompton area. Several Brompton bicycles are provided for anyone who wishes to take part and after a brief demonstration of how to fold/unfold the contraptions we are away. Designed by Andrew Ritchie in 1979 the design has changed a little, but not by much. If you haven’t ridden one before, the bike itself requires some time to adjust to, but once you acclimatize they are surprisingly enjoyable to use.

The first stop was the Rabih Hague shop where we were kindly given an Orangina each and shown some lovely furniture true to Rabih’s beautifully subdued tone. Back on our bikes again and Skandium is our next stop, and after a short stroll around we head off to the V&A to see the Chair Arch, constructed specifically for Design Week. After two further stops and an hour or so on the tour Richard takes us back to Earl’s Court to conclude the tour.
I must say this has been one of my favourite Design Festival surprises this year. This is exactly what the festival needs in London, more immersive events which broaden the experience of design and the format in which it is presented. We’re in a great city which doesn’t feel as though it’s being used to it’s full potential. Much credit to Richard who managed to sustain a high level of enthusiasm for the project despite having been cycling non-stop for the past week. With no accidents yet I hope the bike tour will return again next year for people to enjoy, and that organizers can take inspiration from looking at design curation and presentation and how broad the possibilities are in this city.

Thanks to Richard for taking us around and Charlie for looking after the bikes.

Text: David Wilson

This entry was posted on Monday, September 28th, 2009 at 11:34 pm and is filed under 012, London Design Festival 2009. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.