Ducati’s Auctioning Off This Customized Scrambler for Charity

This one-of-a-kind hand-painted Ducati Scrambler will likely be auctioned off to profit the RxART kids’s charity. (Ducati/)

“Bikes are artwork” is a phrase we hear tossed round on the common in our little nook of the moto world, however let’s be sincere, not each machine may be lumped into that rarified (and very subjective) class. However what if the bike itself was the canvas for the precise artistic work? That’s the concept behind Ducati’s newest mission, whereby the Italians have recruited a top-level visible artist to use their distinctive work onto one of many model’s Scrambler fashions, for a one-of-a-kind, hand-painted murals that might be auctioned off for charity.

Ducati and its companions commissioned up to date artist Mickalene Thomas to work her visible magic on a brand new Icon mannequin. (Ducati/)

Extra to the purpose, Ducati North America has partnered with acclaimed artist Mickalene Thomas to customise this singular 2024 Ducati Scrambler Icon for the upcoming Heritage Auctions, an occasion that holds forth on Might 23. Proceeds from the Scrambler’s sale will profit the RxART kids’s charity as a part of a Ducati partnership with males’s skincare model Atwater.

RxART itself was established in 2000 to assist promote up to date artwork into kids’s hospital settings and provide a extra uplifting therapeutic setting. RxART faucets established up to date artists in order that they can assist remodel sterile medical settings into extra participating locations filled with magnificence and luxury. In the meantime, Ducati’s partnership with Atwater to profit RxART started earlier this 12 months, and the fee with Thomas—an acclaimed artist of her technology—is supposed to assist fund RxART’s set up on the newly opened SUNY Nappi Wellness Institute in Syracuse, New York. RxART has accomplished 58 initiatives with 91 artists in 38 hospitals throughout the US since its launch.

Associated: 2023 Ducati Scrambler First Look

Thomas works in numerous mediums and her ability with daring colours and graphics made for a seamless transition to the tank and covers of the Scrambler. (Ducati/)

The Brooklyn-based Thomas, in the meantime, who’s not simply an influential artist but additionally a Tony Award–profitable co-producer, curator, and mentor, is understood for her progressive, immediately recognizable works, which embody elaborate mixed-media work, images, movies, and installations. Thomas’ distinctive aesthetic abilities make her, in line with Ducati, “an excellent companion for the transformation of a Scrambler Ducati right into a murals.” With Thomas’ experience in materials and picture creation, the donor Scrambler Ducati Icon will get a number of daring coloration, fashion, and graphic therapies alongside its surfaces that really feel like the best match for the playful collection.

Signed and dated by the artist, the Scrambler is prepared for public sale. (Ducati/)

As for the bike itself, the Scrambler Icon obtained a number of updates for the 2023 mannequin 12 months, so there’s nothing new beneath the hood for 2024. (Actually, we’re undecided why Ducati is saying this can be a 2024 mannequin when the 2023s are solely hitting sellers now.) A fast recap: The three 800cc Scramblers for 2023, the Icon, the Full Throttle and the Nightshift, had been all upgraded with ride-by-wire gas injection, two journey modes, and traction management to handle the claimed 73 hp output, with a brand new slipper clutch added to tame the 48 lb.-ft. of torque.

The 2023 800cc Scramblers additionally bought a brand new, extra tapered seat and a lighter body, although it’s nonetheless a trellis design. The skeleton boasts a brand new swingarm and the rear subframe is now detachable, and the Icon mannequin particularly additionally bought six new accent kits with swappable tank covers.

Thomas mocked up coloration mixtures and graphic concepts earlier than engaged on the bike itself. (Ducati/)

Bikes have lengthy been accepted within the artwork world as aesthetic expressions in their very own proper, typically serving as canvases for a higher theme, and to Ducati’s credit score, the brand new partnership with a recent visible is an efficient match for the Scrambler model’s vibe.

Per Ducati, “the next-gen Scrambler Ducati will likely be arriving in North American Ducati dealerships in summer season 2023″ (to be clear, the 2023 fashions had been positioned as the subsequent technology of the collection on the time of their launch final 12 months).

For data on the RxRART charity program, go to rxart.net.

Particulars on the Scrambler Ducati Icon may be seen at scramblerducati.com/us/.

The artist lays out designs for Ducati in entrance of one in every of her signature mixed-media works. (Ducati/)