Joseph Coleman is an American painter, illustrator, actor and performance artist. He has been described as the "walking ghost of Old America" by his wife, photographer Whitney Ward, for his over-riding interest in the historical arcana and personae that often populate his paintings. Of Coleman's work, The New York Times wrote that, “If P. T. Barnum had hired Breughel or Bosch to paint sideshow banners, they might have resembled the art of Joe Coleman.” While Berlin's Tagesspiegel said of Coleman, "Like [George] Grosz in the 1920s, he holds a drastic mirror up to his own times."
"Mommy/Daddy" (1994) by Joe Coleman.
Indian Larry was a motorcycle builder and artist, stunt rider, and biker. He first became known as Indian Larry in the 1980s when he was riding the streets of New York City on a chopped Indian motorcycle. Respected as an old school chopper builder, Larry sought greater acceptance of choppers being looked upon as an art form. He became interested in hot rods and motorcycles at an early age and was a fan of Von Dutch and Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, whom he would later meet in California.
Indian Larry at bike rally in Daytona Beach, Florida, 2003
The Daddy-O (Rat Fink) bike was Larry's tribute to Kustom Kulture icon Ed "Big Daddy" Roth. It features dual carburetors and late 60s style paint.
Wild Child chopper which Larry said in 2003 was the best bike he'd "ever built". Features root beer metal flake paint; also visible is the chromed, twisted down tube and two different head styles on the engine.
Chain of Mystery: the last chopper that Larry built (2004); shown here during a temporary exhibit. As Larry described it, "You don't see bikes like this that often. That's what I shoot for, something that's just mind-bending".