A Harley Davidson - the definitive symbol of freedom and attitude. It's cool, it's American, and it's at the Barbican in London.

If you buy a Harley, what you are buying into is not just mobility but also into a legacy, a dream, a social scene and instant attention.

And you have to live it to understand it. As the T-shirt says: 'Harley-Davidson -- If I Have to Explain, You Wouldn't Understand.'

Beyond description it may be, but the uninitiated can still get a glimpse of the secret world of Harley Davidson. And on this, its 95th anniversary, you'll find London's Barbican Art Gallery is a good place to start.

All shook up over Shovelhead

The Art of the Harley is a display of some of the world's finest customised 'Hogs'.

The exhibition forms part of the Barbican's 'Inventing America' season and displays Harleys so lovingly personalised that they have become art on wheels.

To those who might scoff at the idea, Exhibition Organiser, Conrad Bodman, retorts: "These bikes are hand-made, hand-designed, hand-painted. Like any piece of art. Just because they happen to be functional doesn't mean they can't be appreciated in that way."

To see is to believe. And what visitors will see are 30 magnificent specimens of customisation dating from 1945 to the present day.

The ensemble has taken two years to put together from countries including the USA, France, Belgium, Germany and Sweden, which in itself illustrates the global appeal of the Harley.

Harley scenes

Design team Urban Salon has engineered three different backdrops to show off and give context to the bikes.

Vintage Harleys (1945-1969) are displayed in a 1950s setting. Custom-made machines originated at this time and visitors can compare the olive drab US Military '45 and its anarchic alter ego the Civilian '45.

One of the most famous Harleys in the world can be found here; the Captain America chopper from the film Easy Rider. Captain gleams and radiates attitude. This bike was definitely born to run.

Out on an open highway (1970-1998), you'll run into the most outrageous exhibits from some of the most important US customisers. Arlen Ness is a master at this game with creations such as the Shovelhead Chopper - a sort of red ant on acid.

Flight DeVille: for the courageous only

And, try as you might, you can't avoid the drag queen pink Flight DeVille from Tank Ewisichek's or Cyril Huze's powder blue Miami Nice.

On to the European Harleys (1970s) in a roadside cafe style area. Taking a road break on the M1 was never like this. Be regaled by the Elegante, an Art Deco inspired 1200cc supercharged custom Harley.

Then there's the awe-inspiring Dresser Light - a bike bigger and more scary than anything on two wheels has a right to be. It's a huge black monster, covered with 380 illuminations - not a machine to take lightly.

If this wasn't enough, there are a number of interactive 'Soft Rooms' full of Harley films, photographs, magazines and online computers.

Wild customs

Customisation can be traced back to a group of ex-servicemen in 1945. After the War they spent their spare time and energy buying up and transforming former military Harley Davidsons. Hence the conversion of the Military '45 into the Civilian '45.

This was when Harley gangs, or chapters emerged. Back then, they were bands of bikers of ill intent who took to terrorising the mild-mannered populous of middle-America for over a decade.

This is the legacy of the Hell's Angels and the inspiration for cinematic greats such as The Wild One.

Miami Nice: reflections of the Florida Skyline

These days despite a lingering bad boy image, bumping into a Hells Angel isn't quite such an ordeal.

He or she is probably still part of a gang but is more likely to want to get you involved in fund-raising than send you to casualty.

The Brotherhood

It is, however, the enduring tribal empathy of those in love with the Harley that makes it unique and generates the immense pride that people take in their machines.

As one HD custom rider put it: "My bike means everything to me and being part of a family of like-minded riders is beyond value. Making my bike individual is a way of getting that depth of feeling noticed."

Harley brethren now have four main international groups, divided up into chapters: the National Chopper Club, Harley Riders Club, Harley Owners Group and the Hell's Angels.

Each places emphasis on a particular facet of the Harley character and legend. The Chopper Club and the Hell's Angels speak for themselves. The Riders Club is for customisers and the Owners Group is for owners of brand new Harleys.

Dresser Light: big, bad and ugly

Smaller fringe groups also exist. Against all the odds the Harlistas maintain a strong presence in Cuba.

There is no typical Harley rider. The scope is as wide as machine operator to big bucks city director.

And though most are men, there is a growing female contingent known as the Ladies of Harley.

But aside from the obvious, all these chapters and groups, in fact every individual Harley owner, shares something special. This is demonstrated by the large attendances at international rallies, cross-country trips, charity fund-raising events and numerous other social occasions.

A Harley rider will always help another one out or give the secret Masonic-like wave out on the open road.

As celebrity Harley owner, actor Mickey Rourke, said: "It's a personal thing that can't be described. It's part of you."

It seems to be a heady cocktail of the American flag and eagle, camaraderie, individualism, freedom, and the pride of owning a thing of beauty and quality.

The full exhibition is an explosion of colour

It was that feeling that motivated a group of 13 Harley-Davidson managers in the 1980s to risk everything to salvage the company from extinction in the fight against Japanese competitors.

"It transcends culture. There are no barriers, it has no language. All there is, all that's important is our enthusiasm for motorbikes," says Tim Remus, custom supremo and co-selector for the exhibition.

At the Barbican you could win a Harley and live the legend. And, for the faint-hearted a fake tattoo and a minute on the back of a Harley may be just enough for now.

The Art of the Harley is at the Barbican Art Gallery from 22 January to 26 April.
 

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