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Traveling to Apollonia and Cyrene
October 20th, 2010Traveling to Apollonia and Cyrene
Remains of Italian small gage railroad.
More about our trip east in early June: After getting settled into a Benghazi guesthouse, we made arrangements for a driver to take us to the ancient Greek cities of Apollonia and Cyrene, which were some distance east of Benghazi. However, we managed to make the trip in a day because the roads along the coast are excellent and our driver had no problem traveling at speeds between 130 to 150 kph. His name was Muftah, and he spoke excellent English, had made this trip many times, and was very knowledgeable. We had a very pleasant day with him.
The cave of Omar al-Mukhtar.
The trip begins along the coastal plane and moves gradually towards the Jebel al-Akhdar (Green Mountains). The mountains are anything but green as you rise to the first of two plateaus. These hills look a lot like many parts of the western U.S. By the time you get to the second plateau, there is a lot more foliage.
Entrance to the cave restaurant.
There are many abandoned farmhouses along the way that are all of similar design. These are the farms that were created for Italian immigrants during the occupation of this area that began in 1911 and continued until the Italian defeat in W.W.II. Many Libyans do not look Arabic this can be attributed to the fact that an estimated 66,000 Italians were abandoned in Libya after the war.
Lounge seating in the cave restaurant.
Driving the side roads that wind through the hills can be a treat. Along the way, we passed many caves that had been used by the Sanusi resistance in fighting the Italians; this included the cave of Omar al-Mukhtar. Nearby are the remains of a narrow-gage Italian railway that had been built to pacify the area after al-Mukhtar’s execution. The story of al-Mukhtar’s resistance fight against the Italians can be seen in the 1981 film Lion of the Desert, staring Anthony Quinn.
Party seating in the cave restaurant.
We stopped for lunch along the way at a location that Mustah recommended. This was a local resort that had a restaurant, which had been built into a cave complex. The caves had been expanded to accommodate several large underground dinning rooms. The restaurant was well lit and coolness of the underground environment offered a pleasant respite from the Libyan sun.
Ride In The Woods
July 26th, 2010On a visit to the Netherlands, my son and I drove through the Dutch National Forest. It was all of about the size of a city block. This country was once covered with trees, but today the forests are gone, and the trees that are left are protected by law.
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A Brief History of Benghazi
August 20th, 2010We spent almost a week in Benghazi for Sherri’s work, and while there we tried to learn and see as much as we could. Benghazi is the largest city in Cyrenaica (the eastern part of Libya) with a population of over 600,000 people. The origins of the city are in doubt but it is believed that the first settlement was slightly east of modern Benghazi and may have been established by Greeks from Cyrene or by Aegean immigrants. The city is first mentioned in the 6th century BCE as Eusperides and was believed to have been the site of the legendary Garden of Hesperides. According to Geek mythology, the eleventh quest of Hercules was to steal the golden apples from the Garden of Hesperides.
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| The Italian lighthouse with the ruins of Berenice in the foreground. |
Around 249/247 BCE, the settlement was renamed Berenice, after the Cyrenaican princess who married Ptolemy III of Egypt. This act effectively ceded the city to Egyptian authority. There are a few excavated remains of Berenice on the northern shore of Benghazi but there is little there to see. Most of ancient Berenice lies beneath the modern city. On the same grounds as the ruins of Berenice, there is an old Italian lighthouse built during their occupation of the city.
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| Al-Jame’ al-Kabir Mosque in downtown Benghazi. |
The Romans took control of the city in the 1st century BCE, but by the time the Byzantines arrived, the city was already declining. The Arab invasion of the 7th century did little to revitalize the city, as other ports and trade centers became more favorable. In the 15th century the name Bani Ghazi took hold, which means the sons or descendants of Ghasi, the name of a Bedouin tribe. When the Ottoman Turks took control of the city in 1578, they sought to make the city a center for the collection of taxes, which caused even greater decline among the merchant classes.
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| Omar Al-Mukhtar’s cave in the Jebel al-Akhdar. |
In 1911, Italy set up a naval siege of the city, and it was finally subdued in the 1920s. The Italian influence can be seen in the architecture of the city. It was during this period that several groups began an active resistance to the Italians. By 1922, the Sanusi, a regional Muslim group, was the only serious resistance remaining, but it dwindled after constant confrontation with the modern mechanized capability of the Italian military. The Sanusi resistance was particularly effective in the hinterlands of the Jebel al-Akhdar (Green Mountains), where they were led by a tribal shaykh, Sayyid Omar al-Mukhtar. The Italians were particularly brutal in dealing with the local population during this conflict, and many died or were interred in concentration camps. Al-Mukhtar was captured in 1931 and hanged a few days later while 20,000 of his followers were forced to watch. With al-Mukhtar’s death, the resistance collapsed. The movie “Lion of the Desert” has Anthony Quinn playing the role of Omar al-Mukhtar and contains old film footage of the times as well as very interesting period vehicles.
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| Monument to Gamal Abdel Nasser in downtown Benghazi. |
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| Islamic Call Bldg, the tallest building in Benghazi. |
Since that day, al-Mukhtar has become the national hero of Libya, and his portrait can be seen on the LYD 5 bill. During WWII, Benghazi was bombed repeatedly and changed hands several times, but the Italians were eventually driven out.
Siamese Schwinns
March 1st, 2010As a child I was fascinated by the notion of conjoined twins and wondered how two people functioned in one body. I have transferred that fascination into my work and have learned that those who view this piece share the same fascination. Invariably they will look at it and ask “But how do you ride it?”
Siamese Schwinns
2006 rebuilt 2009
H: 70” (176 cm)
W: 48” (121 cm)
D: 18” (46 cm)
Bicycle parts
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Bipolar Lady…
March 1st, 2010Living with a bipolar family member can be devastating; one moment everything is fine, and the next moment nothing is right. I tried to envision what a bipolar bicycle would be like to ride. It is a bike that can’t be steered, has too many gears to shift, too few levers to operate all four brakes, and the two cranks are too far apart to ride comfortably.
Bipolar Lady or Lady Bipolar, 2006 rebuilt 2009
H: 30” (76 cm) L: 70” (178 cm), W: 40” (101 cm)
Bicycle parts
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Cycle of Life
March 5th, 2010Photo by Larry Travis
A unicycle requires constant attention, as does a bonsai. Just as the bonsai cannot be ignored and expected to live, a unicycle rider cannot expect to coast and stay upright.
H: 60” (152 cm)
W: 25” (64 cm)
D: 21” (53 cm)
Unicycle & bonsai
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International Racing…
March 5th, 2010I have long enjoyed watching the Tour de France and admired the heroics of Greg LaMond and Lance Armstrong. We must never forget, however, that we are all racers. We may only have one gear and one brake, but we need to participate.
This Dr. Suess-style racing tricycle, and its autobiographical nature, was created prior to my wife and I moving to South Africa. The team name is a compilation of our names. The slogan “From Kalamazoo to Timbuktu” is derived from a well-known children’s book by Harriet Ziefert and Tanya Roitman. That slogan relates to the fact that I grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan and yes, I know, Timbuktu is in Mali and not in South Africa. The number 24 was my high school sports number, and the white nine-pointed star is a symbol of the Baha’i Faith.
International Racing Tricycle
World Class Racing Tricycle, 2006 rebuilt 2009
H: 66” (168 cm), L: 84” (212 cm), W: 32” (81 cm)
Steel & bicycle parts
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Le Velo d’Appartment…
March 1st, 2010Le Velo d’Appartment pour Marcel Duchamp (An Exercycle for Marcel Duchamp)
Marcel Duchamp first produced his “assisted readymade” Stool with Bicycle Wheel in 1913. I asked myself, what would it look like if Marcel Duchamp had an exercycle today?” Le Velo d’Appartement pour Marcel Duchamp is my homage to the Dada master.
In keeping with Duchampian principles, one can peddle hard on this large male appendage and never go anywhere. There are also rear-view mirrors that don’t function in the usual manner. The right mirror is for men; it contains the message (in French) that “The person in the mirror is better looking than they appear.” The left mirror is for women and replicates Duchamp’s message on his 1919 defaced postcard of the Mona Lisa. The rider can align herself with the mustache and goatee on the mirror, and the letters L.H.O.O.Q. (Elle a chaud au cul), translate as “She has a hot ass.”
Details
(An Exercyle for Marcel Duchamp), 2006 rebuilt 2009
H: 125” (316 cm)
L: 117” (296 cm)
W: 35” (89 cm)
Steel, foam, vinyl, wood, plastic &
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Four Boys Tug-a-War
March 5th, 2010Boys tend to be more competitive in their play. They can run in opposite directions, but the interconnectedness of the peer group functions as the braking system and as a group conscience.
Four Boys Tug-a-War, 2009
W: 72” (183 cm), D: 72” (183 cm), H: 24” (61 cm)
Steel & bicycle parts
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Five Girls Playing
March 1st, 2010When moved, this sculpture will spin in place. There are no pedals, but each wheel has a brake. The message is that childhood should not be work but should be enjoyed. It is important that children do learn to say “no,” however.
Five Girls Playing 2009
H: 56” (142 cm)
W: 54” (137 cm)
D: 54” (137 cm)
Steel & bicycle parts
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