Artist Statement

The St. Petersburg Bridge Tour was a rolling performance by artist Robert Hickman celebrating the beauty of public space by calling attention to bridges, as the architecture of daily life, which often go unnoticed. The tour promoted alternative types of transportation and safe cycling. Bridges overcome obstacles to connect communities. The wheel is a universal symbol of unity and the earth's cycles of renewal. St. Petersburg boasts a world famous collection of bridges. It has 342 culturally significant spans, the majority of which were crossed by Hickman on only one wheel. The project was a part of Art Prospect Festival, St. Petersburg, Russia, September 25 – 28, 2014, which was produced by CEC ArtsLink and curated by U.S. public art expert Kendal Henry. Special thanks to Susan Katz, Fritzie Brown, and Jane Lombard.

Robert Hickman's installations and sculptures were exhibited in solo and group shows at New York venues PS1, SculptureCenter, Exit Art, White Columns, Socrates Sculpture Park, Smack Mellon and Saint Peters Church, among many others. His permanent public commissions are at 72nd Street and Broadway subway station in New York (Laced Canopy); Bryant Avenue pedestrian bridge, Hunts Point, Bronx (Silvered); Capital Community College, Hartford, CT; and Roosevelt Island Station, New York. Hickman has been reviewed in publications such as Art News, Sculpture Magazine, Time Out, New York Magazine, The New York Times, The New York Post, New York Daily News, and The Miami Herald. Hickman’s work was recognized by many national and international awards, among them two CEC Artslink Project Grants and a New York City MASterwork Award for Best New Public Art from The Municipal Society of New York. An Ohio native, Hickman currently is an Assistant Adjunct Professor at Hunter College, New York. He lives and works in Brooklyn.