Artist Chris Sickels of Red Nose Studio and His Harley Pacer

Chris Sickels is an illustrator and motorcyclist from Greenfield, Indiana. He rides a 1965 Harley-Davidson Pacer, an underpowered 175cc 2-stroke that provides plenty of fulfillment on rural back roads. We stop by his studio where a world of sculpted puppets and miniature environments line walls and crowd desks. He creates three-dimensional scenes built strictly for a photograph that will be utilized in magazines, books, and other marketing collateral. He sketches the scene, sculpts the characters, paints them, sews their clothing, builds the set, and shoots the final photo.

Two particular pieces command our attention. One is a dapper, gangling fellow on a fictitiously elongated BMW and the other is a café racing character on a gritty Norton. The latter features a headlight made from a Dremeled-down eyeglass lens, some faux-rust for a convincing patina, and a tiny-but-accurate pudding bowl helmet atop an oddly proportioned rider, all contributing to the awkward authenticity of Chris’ work.

In this feature, we find out why Chris is drawn to motorcycling and how this interest finds its way into his unique and intricate art.

Learn more about Chris Sickels’ work:

www.rednosestudio.com

See more moto-vids and stories at Good Spark Garage:

www.GoodSparkGarage.com

Music from the album:

Close To Home: Old Time Music From Mike Seeger's Collection 1952-1967

Last Gold Dollar - Edsel Martin and Bill McElreath

He Will Set Your Fields on Fire - Kilby Snow and Mike Seeger