As is often the case with Albert Hien, who ironises modern society and its technoid and linguistic formulas, the "Bicycle" also offers a wealth of symbolic references and surprising changes of familiar forms. The "Bicycle", a banal and omnipresent everyday object, is exaggerated by the sheer size of the sculpture. The crossed hammers, and then in red, are reminiscent of the mining symbol of mallets and iron, although in Hien's case they are rather like forge hammers and collectively remind us of a socialist symbol. Therefore, the rear wheel belongs to the working class. The front wheel is quite different, with its contrasting champagne glasses, which clearly point to the other end of society.
Taken as a whole, Hien's "Bicycle" is thus a social image that is as critical as it is ironic. It translates the tensions in society, as well as the path that lies ahead of it into a symbol that is both monumental and playful.
