Art Car, Art Bike

[dreamshark]

Richard and I rode up to Lake Street to watch the art cars go by. It was a fun little parade, just an hour long, which is about my limit for standing and watching anything. We even found a shady spot in front of the Sherwin Williams store. There were many new cars, as well as some old favorites. For some reason, painting one's car to resemble a fish tank seems to be the most popular theme. Of course, most themes are one of a kind, like the fabulous Lizard Car and the Cork Truck.

There was one ominous trend, however - the appearance of quite a few new cars that were nothing but commercials for a business or a cause. In most cases these weren't real art cars at all - they were ordinary vehicles draped with a few temporary decorations. There were two cars in the parade that were not decorated at all, apparently advertising car dealerships. Boooooo. Hisssss. The whole idea of an art car is hare-brained creativity combined with obsessive hobbyitis, not "marketing opportunity."

Richard wondered why so many of the art cars that we see parked on the street were not in the parade. Good question. You'd think if you had spent as much time as these people have spent on your car that you would not want to miss the one local venue for shoing it off. My theory is that there is a seething undercurrent of vicious politics in the art car community that we tourists know nothing about, and the art cars missing from the parade were pointedly missing for reasons that we will never know.

I was inspired by the decorated cars and the remarkably pleasant backyard weather to renew the decorations on my bike. It's not exactly an Art Bike, but it has a flashy seat with lightning bolts on it (Blazing Saddle) and a lot of little pieces of broken jewelry glued hapharzardly to the frame. Many of the little decorations had fallen off and the vestigial glue had gathered ugly dirt, so it really needed freshening up. Once you start gluing things on your bike you're sort of stuck with it as a perpetual task, like with dying your hair a radically different color. The roots were showing on my bike, and I've spent the weekend touching them up.

Comments

[barondave.livejournal.com]

I must have missed it. Maybe they were quiet or something. Usually, I watch out my balcony window.

I vaguely remember talking to someone, years ago, about the parade vs. art cars. There are other issues than politics, but I don't remember what they are.

It..

[lsanderson.livejournal.com]

It started on Grand this year. (Although, it may every year...)

[skylarker.livejournal.com]

My theory is that there is a seething undercurrent of vicious politics in the art car community that we tourists know nothing about, and the art cars missing from the parade were pointedly missing for reasons that we will never know.

You are probably on to something there. :)

I'd like to see what you've done with your bike!