Dreams On Wheels

Since 12 June the exhibition Dreams on Wheels is in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The city learns now that cycling is not only about sport and can be a pleasant way of mobility in such a beautiful city as Rio de Janeiro. Through the Danish Cultural Institute and the Danish Embassy in Brazil, that brought the exhibition, there were activities regarding the theme of the exhibition such as a seminar, speeches and bike rides. The list of activities included a visit to one of the cycling paths of the city and a check list was made. After the visit, participants could discuss the points that needed to be changed from the user´s point of view.

A report with these suggestions will be delivered to the mayor of the city. Almost two hundred people attended the opening night, including the Secretary of Culture of Rio de Janeiro. Also people from other states, non-governmental organisations and the society in general. Families were able to teach children how cycling can be healthy for the environment, to the city and themselves. At the end of the exhibition, visitors saw how one of the oldest means of transport could be transformed into the most current, practical, modern and convenient ally in urban mobility and increase the quality of life in Brazilian cities as well.

The schedule – Rio de Janeiro: The exhibition is on show at Centro de Arte Municipal Hélio Oiticica Rua Luís de Camões, 60 Centro – Rio de Janeiro
12 June – Opening cocktail
13 June – 20km bicycle ride from Copacabana Beach to the Exhibition Centre . A speech by Zé Lobo, director of the NGO Transporte Ativo about urban mobility and cycling
16 June – Seminar ‘Bicycle and the cities’ Lectures and discussions about urban mobility, urban design and city’s for people
17 June – Visit to one of the bicycle paths of the city (Botafogo-Lagoa). Discussion and elaboration of a dossier suggesting improvements to the path and the neighborhood
08 July – Speech ‘A Carioca (person from Rio de Janeiro) clycling in Copenhague) by Zé Lobo, director of the NGO Transporte Ativo
25 July – The exhibition travels to Brasília

Back to travel schedule

Dreams on Wheels FULL VERSION 2010

Mexico City06.03.2010-22.03.2010
Mexico City Museum (Museo de la Ciudad de México), Pino Suarez 30.

Dreams on Wheels will be in Mexico City and will first be located at the “Club de Bicicletas”, which is the Bicycle office of the Environmental Department of Mexico City, close to Bosque de Chapultepec, from March 5th to March 22nd. Following, the exhibition will move to the “Zocalo” from March 22nd to April 30th

Mexico City06.04.2010-26.04.2010
Universidad Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM), Universidad, Zacapú, MICH, Mexico.

Rio12.06.2010-26.07.2010

The exhibition was at Centro de Arte Municipal Hélio Oiticica Rua Luís de Camões, 60 Centro – Rio de Janeiro.

Since 12 June the exhibition Dreams on Wheels is in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The city learns now that cycling is not only about sport and can be a pleasant way of mobility in such a beautiful city as Rio de Janeiro.. read more

Brasília01.08.2010-16.08.2010
Opening in National Museum of Brasília.

On 1 August, the exhibition arrives in Brasília, capital of Brazil. There it will be at the National Museum. Brasília, as a projected young city - only fifty years old - will be able to see and learn how to create a more human city as well.

Dreams on Wheels LIGHT VERSION 2010

Brno 07.04.2010-17.04.2010

Nová radnice, Křížová chodba, Dominikánské nám. 1, Brno

Dreams on Wheels in Brno –Czech Republic- was complemented on 7 April 2010 by a Czech – Danish Seminar “Walking and Biking in the Cities”.. read more

Prague 20.04.2010-26.04.2010
Hala C, Drahobejlova 15, Prague

Dreams on Wheels in Prague is organised in collaboration with Auto*Mat, Nadace Partnerstvi and the Czech Ministry of Transport the Czech Ministry of Transport.. read more

Ljubljana 29.04.2010-10.05.2010
Ljubljana City Hall’s Desni atrij Mestni trg, 1, 1000 Ljubljana

Dreams On Wheels shown as a part of ‘May 2010 – Month of Cycling’, Embassy of Denmark, Ljubljana.in cooperation with the Municipality of Ljubljana presents the exhibition ‘Dreams on Wheels’.. read more

St. Petersburg 20.05.2010-31.05.2010
On 21 May 2010 the Dreams on Wheels exhibition takes off in Saint Petersburg.

Dreams on Wheels, which is an inspirational exhibition, will take place in Loft Project Etazhi, which used to be an old bread factory from the Soviet period that now has now been turned in to exhibition space in the centre of the city.. read more

Dublin 14.06.2010-18.06.2010
The exhibition takes place during Bike Week in the Civic Offices Atrium, Wood Quay, from 14-18 June 2010.

Do you find it normal that in the middle of a snow storm a lady rides home with her groceries and a baby on her bike.. read more

Dreams on Wheels FULL VERSION 2009

Edinburgh 19.01.2009 - 23.03.2009
Dreams on Wheels in the Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh 20a Inverleith Row, Edinburgh EH3 5LR, United Kingdom

The Danish Cultural Institute, Great Britain, in collaboration with the Scottish Government, The City of Edinburgh Council, The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Denmark and various cycling organisations, is presenting the cycling exhibition, Dreams on Wheels in response to Denmark hosting COP 15 –The UN Climate Change.. read more

Moscow 20.05.2009 - 15.06.2009
Dreams on Wheels will be exhibited at the Central House of Artists Krymskiy Val ul. 10 Moskva 117049 Moscow, Russia

Conference on the 29 May: MOMENTS OF ARCHITECTURE.For the annual architectural fair, ARCH Moscow, The Royal Danish Embassy in Moscow was privileged this year to present the Danish exhibition Dreams on Wheels which was displayed together with the architectural exhibition, Instants of Architecture. Dreams on Wheels was presented.. read more

Portland 02.10.2009 - 10.11.2009
Portland is set to be a new destination for Dreams on Wheels. It will open in close cooperation with the Department of Transportation and the Oregon Manifest.. read more

San Francisco 19.11.2009-15.12.2009
Dreams on Wheels is currently riding towards San Francisco City Hall’s South Light Court. Open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., except for 26 and 27 November.

The exhibit will coincide with the United Nations International Climate Conference set for 3-14 December in Copenhagen. “The SFMTA is proud to share this exciting exhibit on bicycling with San Francisco and the Bay Area,” said Nathaniel P. Ford Sr., SFMTA Executive Director/CEO. “We know that it will be of great interest to our growing bicycling community.”.. read more

Dreams on Wheels LIGHT VERSION 2009

Riga 20.03.2009 -15.04.2009
The Dreams on Wheels are now cycling at the Riga Museum of Foreign Art, Pils Laukums 3, Riga 1050, Latvia

On 26th March 2009, the Danish Ambassador to Latvia Uffe Wolffhechel and the President of Latvia Valdis Zatlers marked the opening of the exhibition Dreams on Wheels with a bicycle ride through the old quarter of the city of Riga. They were followed by a long procession of cycling citizens and a pack of running photographers.. read more

Visit the Danish Embassy in Riga

Tokyo 11.05.2009 -02.06.2009

Denmark’s Ambassador to Japan, Franz-Michael S. Mellbin, breaks away from the peloton to promote COP15 and Danish cycling culture in Japan. He will be joined by thousands of Japanese people. The Tour starts in Tokyo on May 23rd and will end in Copenhagen on June 14th.. read more

Budapest 25.08.2009 - 25.09.2009
Dreams on Wheels will be on show at the VAM Design Centre, Kiraly utca 26, Budapest

A dream comes true - Danish bicycles comes to Budapest – “Dreams on Wheels” The Royal Danish Embassy, The Danish Cultural Institute in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark and various cycling organisations is presenting the cycling exhibition, “Dreams on Wheels” in response to Denmark is hosting COP15 – the UN Climate Change Summit – in December 2009. The exhibition will.. read more

Conference on the 21 September: URBAN DESIGN AND TRAFFIC PLANNING. At the Budapest University of Technology and Economics, IB017 auditorium; District XI. Magyar Tudósok körútja 2

Visit the Danish Embassy in Budapest

London 01.09.2009-02.10.2009
Dreams on Wheels at London City Hall, The Queen’’s Walk, More London, London SE1 2AA Open Mondays to Thursdays from 8.30am to 6pm, Fridays from 8.30am to 5.30pm, and on London Open House weekend 19 and 20 September.

Welcome to the world of two wheels!For devoted or even those less passionate and occasional cyclists, Dreams on Wheels presents a view of contemporary urban cycling culture and examples of what can be seen and more importantly experienced in London and Copenhagen. For those of you who are yet.. read more

Visit the Danish Embassy in London

Barcelona 07.11.2009-16.11.2009
The exhibition is situated in Parc de la Ciutadella, entrance at the Arc de Triomf. Open daily 10 -18.00.

The Danish Cultural Institute in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark and various cycling organisations is presenting the Danish cycling exhibition; “Dreams on Wheels” in re-sponse to Denmark is hosting COP15 – the UN Climate Change Summit – in December 2009 in Copenhagen. The beautiful setting and weather made everyone feel like taking to their bike.. read more

Visit the Danish Embassy in Spain

Brussels 01.12.2009-18.12.2009
Dreams on Wheels are to be found at Brussels Luxemburg Station, under the Esplanade of the European Parliament, European Quarter of Brussels.

CONFERENCE ON 1 DECEMBER : in the Brussels ParliamentOn the occasion of COP15 Brussels will be in the sign of the bicycle on Tuesday the 1st of December. The Danish exhibition “Dreams on Wheels” will be officially opened at the Brussels Luxemburg Station, at the same time as the new bicycle point “point-vélo” where you can rent a bicycle or get you own repaired. In the afternoon a seminar on cycling policies and sustainable urban planning will take place in the Brussels Parliament.. read more

Visit the Danish Embassy in Brussels

The bicycle in our climate change era could be regarded as a Trojan Horse for Sustainability. In other words, it can insidiously infiltrate people’s subconscious ambition to become climate-friendly. When inhabitants adopt bike culture, knowingly or unknowingly, the city and urban spaces become more sustainable in terms of transportation, but even more so in terms of quality of life and lifestyle.

Dreams on Wheels is an alternative advocacy exhibit to build a platform for constructive and open debate about the possible changes cities can undergo when having a cyclocentric urban design strategy. Alternative advocacy is usually a civic act entailing a certain amount of lobbying, whether aggressive or subtle, or at least that is how it is often perceived. At Etikstudio, we believe that exhibits or other creative formats can provide an alternative route to change by setting up an informal debate structure between experts and non-experts and enabling word of mouth to be an advocate for change.  

Jan Gehl, Jean Michel Charbonneau, Troels Andersen, Jens Nielsen, Klaus Bondam, Jens Rørbaek, Lars Gemzøe, Lars Bo Andersen, COWI… a list of VIPs that have been the architects behind the transformation of Copenhagen, Odense and Aarhus. They see the bicycle as much more than a leisure device, and rather as the ultimate commuter vehicle. That is, if the infrastructure, education, tradition and vision align to make a strong and motivating cycling culture.

The most striking feature about cycling is not only how you can use it for a fast commute and building healthier lifestyles in dense urban spaces, but how every city that has such a focus naturally becomes environmentally sounder. Imagine if more cities, both large and small, managed this transformation rather than investing heavily in public transportation in the first instance. Using a bike is such a civilized and stylish way of becoming an environmentalist.

This is not to say we do not need cars, or that we should stop aiming to design more efficient ones which use hydrogen or recyclable fuel cells. Nor should we dismiss public transportation strategies that are an absolute necessity when building a homogeneous mobility network with a long-term perspective. On the contrary, the bicycle is a tool to balance those other policies rather than an add-on. Sustainability is a direct benefit and quality of life improves dramatically through increased socialisation and the slowing down of the pace of the city.

read more

Jan Gehl’s urban quality firm Gehl Architects, which he founded with Helle Søholt in 2000, is the world’s leading urban space planning company.

With 40 years of practice, Gehl has now transformed Copenhagen’s city centre into a bustling and lively pedestrian strip where shopping and entertainment go hand in hand with playfulness and environmental consciousness. Melbourne, London and now New York have also called upon the firm to help improve urban quality and re-emerge from the “car invasion”. Gehl’s methodology is unique and sharp and is anchored in statistical and sociological analysis.

Learn more through the Exhibit !

ABOUT GEHL ARCHITECTS : RESEARCH AS FOUNDATION

The work and further research of Gehl Architects is based on Jan Gehl’s four decades of extensive research carried out at The School of Architecture, The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. The research is the basis of worldwide urban quality consultancy and reflects Gehl Architects’ viewpoint that working in the public realm requires a multi-disciplinary approach, as the field of work encompasses not only architecture and planning but also psychology, anthropology and sociology to truly understand how people experience and use the city.

Life - Space - Buildings

Gehl Architects believe that a good city is one where attention is paid to human scale city planning. A city should open up, invite and include people, having different activities and possibilities and thereby ensuring multiplicity and diversity. To achieve this, design solutions are based on the close relationship between people’s natural use of the public space and the physical character and form of the built environment. Their design solutions begin with formulating a vision and comprehensive programme based on the type of life - its activities and attractions - that is inherent in a given area. The next step is to develop a public space network that can support public life through scale, form and climate. Finally we envision how buildings can contribute to our aspirations for public life in terms of height, massing and scale as well as their functions and interaction with the public realm.

Jan Gehl, b.1936

Jan Gehl is an Architect and Professor of Urban Design at the School of Architecture at Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. He is also the founding partner of Gehl Architects –Urban Quality Consultants. His research on public spaces and public life began in Copenhagen,but was quickly applied to many other cities in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia. His ideas and approaches to design for public spaces incorporate the cutting edge of technology without losing sight of what best supports and enhances people’s experience of everyday life in the public realm. In 1992, he received an honorary doctors degree from Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh. In 1993 he won the Sir Patrick Abercrombie Prize - for exemplary contributions to Town Planning and Territorial Development from the International Union of Architects, and in 1998 he received the EDRA/Places Research Award from the Environmental Design Research Association, USA. Jan Gehl is a Honorary Fellow of RIBA, The Royal British Institute of Architects, of AIA, American Institute of Architects and RAIC, Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. Gehl’s publications include Life between Buildings, Public Spaces- Public Life, and New Urban Spaces, which have been translated into multiple languages.