No Hands. How the Bicycle Changes Warsaw

No Hands. How the Bicycle Changes Warsaw

For more than a hundred and fifty years, the bicycle has held a special and somewhat paradoxical place in the history of Warsaw. On the one hand, it is one of the most transformative inventions; on the other, it is often underappreciated. Viewed from the perspective of the history of technology, it can be considered a transitional stage: a link between the age of walking and horse-drawn travel and the dominance of combustion engines. It is an invention that delighted at the end of the 19th century, yet today is often seen as less exciting. It is slower than modern means of transport, cannot carry large loads, does not protect against rain and usually serves only one person. And yet it is precisely this simplicity that makes the bicycle keep returning, today too, as a tool of change and renewal for the city.

The creators of the exhibition “No Hands. How the Bicycle Changes Warsaw” examine this phenomenon, presenting the bicycle not only as a means of transport but also as a technology that shapes everyday practices, affects the experience of the body and the way the city is perceived. Cycling, in turn, is shown as a phenomenon that is both historical and contemporary: a practice that in different periods took on different, sometimes contradictory meanings and was linked to different visions of modernity. The exhibition addresses, among other things, mobility as a cultural experience, questions of emancipation, and the role of cycling in the material culture of the city and its significance as a phenomenon with social and political dimensions.

Beginnings of the Bicycle and the Triumph of Cycling

Cyclists riding along the Kościuszko Embankment during the Peace Race, Edward Hartwig, 1960s, collections of the Museum of Warsaw

Cycling appeared in Warsaw already in the 19th century. The first rides took place in the 1860s, on “samojezdy”, “samopędy” or “samochody” as bicycles were then called, whether imported from abroad or produced locally. A real boom, however, came after 1886, when the Warsaw Cyclists’ Society was founded and in England the “safety” bicycle was invented, a design essentially corresponding to the one we know today. The beginnings of cycling also gave rise to specialized sports journalism.

The exhibition presents fragments of magazines such as “Cyklista”, “Koło”, “Kolarz, Wioślarz i Łyżwiarz” and “Warszawska Gazeta Sportowa”. Their pages not only reported on rapidly developing competitions, but also discussed health and the ideas associated with practicing sport. Among the exhibits is also a scarf connected with the Peace Race of 1950, documenting fan culture, as well as a set of souvenirs accompanying one of the most important sporting events in the countries of the Eastern Bloc.

The sporting excitement is also reflected in the film “Zaczarowany rower”, directed by Silik Sternfeld, based on a screenplay by Jerzy Suszko and Bohdan Tomaszewski. It is a sports and social story, part of which takes place in Warsaw during international cycling races. The narrative is complemented by photographs by Leonard Jabrzemski, handed over to the Museum of Warsaw in the 1970s, showing cycling races held on the streets of the capital during the postwar reconstruction.

The Bicycle as a Tool of Emancipation

One of the most important threads of the exhibition is the question of emancipation. At various moments in history the bicycle became a tool for expanding autonomy, for workers, women, children and migrants alike. It enabled independent movement, changed the relationship between work and free time, and between private and public spheres, giving people greater freedom. The history of cycling is thus intertwined with the history of social aspirations, class, gender and generational differences, and changes in lifestyle.

Maria Chrząszczowa at a bicycle repair stall on Marszałkowska Street, Zofia Chomętowska, 1945, collections of the Museum of Warsaw

The exhibition presents, among other things, photographs of Karolina Kocięcka and Maria Skłodowska-Curie on bicycles.…