Bicyclists in Amsterdam are not outfitted with the protective layers of
glass and steel provided by automobiles. There is no armor that prevents
other cyclists, pedestrians, or photographers for that matter, from seeing
their clothing or witnessing the changes in their expressions as events
and emotions cycle through the minds and bodies of the cyclists and their
passengers.
The people riding the more than 700,00 bicycles in Amsterdam may be young
or old. They may be fashionably dressed, dressed for business or casually
attired. Many are locals going to or from work, shopping, visiting or taking
the children and the dog out for a ride. Locals may have standard bicycles
but many have jump seats for babies in front and back or baskets for children,
dogs and/or packages. Tourists travel about in packs or pairs, many with
maps in hand. They ride on brightly colored bicycles that advertise any
of a number of businesses that rent bikes by the day or week.
On visiting Amsterdam I was struck by the number and the diversity of the
people cycling. Whether local or tourist, the cyclists in Amsterdam do an
amazing number of things while riding. Living in the New Jersey suburbs
I may see packs of cyclists decked out in their riding outfits on weekends
or a few kids cruising the neighborhood or riding to or from school. In
Amsterdam I saw people riding bicycles that I could never imagine on a bike
in New Jersey or New York. I caught glimpses of the expressions on their
faces that automobiles insulate. The images in this series are about those
people.
