Homeless in Vancouver: This motorcycle is made entirely of “stalk” parts

The wicker motorcycle did its job. It attracted my attention from half a block away and drew me into the store on the northwest corner of Granville Street and West Broadway.

Had I known it was made of wicker I’d have saved myself the effort. But I had the idea it was made of some more serious sort of wood.

Anyway, there I was, standing in front of it, feeling a little silly.

I had to admit though that it was impressive in its own way—a surprisingly accurate, life-size model of a motorcycle, made entirely out of sticks and twigs. You don’t see that every day. In fact, I had never seen that before in my life.

Art is a start but wicker is quicker?

An original work of this size and complexity must have a name attached to it, I  thought. So I went into the store in order to ask the smartly dressed woman behind the sales desk what the name of the artist was who had, ah, woven it.

The woman looked up at me from her paperwork and then in the direction I was pointing—toward the wicker motorcycle. Her expression brightened noticeably.

“Three hundred dollars,” she said, straight out, pinning me with a big smile and her full, unblinking attention.

“Um,” I started.

“It’s on sale!” She added.

At that point, my interest simply evaporated and my attitude turned 180 degrees.

It was just a product after all, made by unknown and probably terribly underpaid people. Perhaps there was a factory somewhere churning these wicker wonders out, 20-a-day, in some ironically assembly line-like way, from “stalk” parts.

I felt a little disappointed and I also felt a little like a gazelle under the bright, sharp gaze of the saleswoman.

After thanking her I left the store, which took me past the motorcycle one last time.

But it is pretty cool, I  thought, even if it is made of wicker.