Michael Lichter Returns to Sturgis for Come Together, The Sprit of Born-Free

The Sturgis Buffalo Chip, the legendary campground and entertainment venue famous for its free-to-campers concerts during the Sturgis Rally, today announced that the annual Motorcycles as Art event will return to the Buffalo Chip’s 7,000 square foot Exhibition Center in 2012 with an all new exhibit titled, Come Together, The Sprit of Born-Free. This exciting new exhibit features a collection of one of a kind custom motorcycles and artwork. Open daily to the public with free admission from August 4th through the 10th, 2:00pm to 10:00pm.

       Presented by the Sturgis Buffalo Chip and curator, famed photographer Michael Lichter in conjunction with Born-Free bike show creators Grant Peterson and Mike Davis, this year’s highly anticipated exhibit will be like no other in the history of Motorcycles as Art. Come Together, The Sprit of Born-Free celebrates freedom of expression, contemporary motorcycle design and the vision of today’s most innovative artists and custom bike fabricators. This exhibition will look at what is behind the notion that motorcycle design is as much about the culture and times it was born of as it is about the machinery itself. It will do this by looking at an emerging movement within custom motorcycling. 

       “Over the last few years, custom bike building has been returning to its roots.” explains Come Together, The Sprit of Born-Free Curator Michael Lichter. “Custom bike builders have been looking back to simpler times, to motorcycling in the 1950's-1970’s for inspiration. They are back in their small garages all across America getting their bikes to work better, look better, and represent who they are. They work by themselves and they work with their best friends. This new breed of builder is acknowledging the styles of the past as well as today’s engineering innovations and in doing this, they are breathing new life into old machines. Their creations reflect their personal stories, their friends and contemporary life they are part of. Paramount to all, they are building these bikes to ride – and they ride them hard.”

       The Born-Free ride-in bike show that began in Southern California in 2009 as an event that brought together like minded individuals with a love for choppers, old motorcycles and the culture that surrounds them, has now grown into something much larger. The show has become an epicenter for the fusion of past and present motorcycle design. It is with this shared vision that Motorcycles as Art Curator Michael Lichter and Born-Free creators Grant Peterson and Mike Davis have joined forces for the annual exhibition at the Buffalo Chip that will see more than 25-custom bikes and art that represent the Born-Free movement.
       “We are very proud and excited about this year’s exhibit,” says Sturgis Buffalo Chip Owner, Rod Woodruff. “Michael Lichter and his collaborating partners have brought together more then just a collection of one of a kind motorcycles and art for all rally goers to enjoy, they have captured the culture and vibe of a point in motorcycling history. Come Together, The Sprit of Born-Free will be remembered as the exhibition that told the story of not only great motorcycles but of the people that build them.”


Sturgis Buffalo Chip
605-347-9000
www.buffalochip.com