The 25th annual Art Car parade was held this weekend in Houston.  It is fitting, somehow, that in the city home to Big Oil, a movement has grown over the years to turn automobiles into art.  I was not living here when the tradition got started but having lived here for the past 15 years, I have seen it grow every year as the participation increases, even drawing enthusiasts from different states across the country as well as from Canada and Mexico.  This year there were slightly more than 300 entries in the parade- not limited to only cars but also entires with bicycles, roller blades and small lawnmowers- people simply just wanting to be a part of the fun.

The mayor rode in the banana car. I later saw this car driving around the city. I guess they took it out for an extended spin after the parade.

I remember the first time I ran into Art Cars.  I was at the Houston International Festival and they had on the schedule “Art Car parade”, a parade scheduled to wind its way along the streets of the festival. Being curious I stopped to watch.  I was immediately captivated.  Everything from cars simply used as a canvas, exhibiting classy and elegant paint jobs, to fantastical whims of imagination where the underlying vehicle was totally undetectable, passed in front of me.  I was hooked and tried to attend the parade every year when I was in town. This year, on the 25th anniversary, I was in town and was not going to miss it.  Even though Saturday was a typical hot, sweltering Houston day the parade route was packed with people ready to sit back and be a part of the fun and quirky event.  The participants certainly appear to enjoy themselves!

(For a full history and evolution of the Art Car tradition in Houston go to the following link:  http://www.thehoustonartcarparade.com/art-car-parade/  )

My all time favorite. The lobsters and fish dance to the tune of “Rawhide” as the car drives by. It never fails to make me laugh!

Some of the cars are regulars, and like old friends, I greet them again year after year.  One of these, the “Sashimi” car, remains my favorite.  The artist basically put fish and lobsters all over the car.  The part that I get a kick out of is that the fish and lobsters all move, in time, to music.  So as the car moves down the street, belting out the theme to “Rawhide” the fish and lobsters are constantly dancing to the beat.  It is a clever and also complicated design and always makes me laugh!  Another stand by is the “Crapper” which is always a part of the festivities.  The guy driving it is sitting on the toilet seat, his pants (or some pants, anyway- I never look too closely) down around his ankles, the door wide open.  Truly a classic.

The “crappr” always a crowd favorite (for some reason!).

One enterprising group took the cab to a Mac truck and turned it into something that looks like a flying saucer.  This is always the first car down the street.  There are several other entries that started life as busses.  Some simply become strange party bars, traveling down the street with bands and dancers, all dressed to the appropriate theme.  One bus has been turned into a fairly huge and scary dragon.  One car, designed to be a peacock, has a tail feathers that open up and folds, just like a peacock’s tail, as it drives down the street.  Another dragon, made out of a small coupe of some kind, has scales made from only spoons.

The redone Mac truck cab that opens the parade. I am not sure what it is supposed to be, but it is impressive, nonetheless.

The “peacock” car. The spray of feathers opens and closes as it goes down the street, controlled from the inside by the driver.

The “art car, art car” completely coated with matchbox cars. It must have taken a long time to put that together.

One of the most clever entires. The scarecrow-like figure at the front actually lifted his feet and set them down giving you the impression he was towing the car behind him. Really complex machinery involved!

The pink mouse, covered with some kind of fuzzy material. Good thing it was not raining!

The variety of the materials used and the ideas presented never cease to amaze me.  Besides the dragon with spoons, there was another car called the “Art car, art car”  which was completely covered with matchbox cars. Yet another had ping-pong balls all over it.  Another, tennis balls. One car, dressed up as a cow, had what looked like cow hide covering it.  There was also a pink mouse covered with fur of some kind (it kind of looked like a bunch  of boas).  Another one of my favorites was the car covered completely with irregularly shaped pieces of mirror, giving it a bright and shiny mosaic look.  I have no idea how long it took to measure, cut and attach all of those fragments, but it could not have been trivial.  A lot of work went into many of the cars that paraded by.

Over the years the number of cars entered from local schools has increased as well providing young people an outlet for their artistic expression.  Sometimes the schools enter with themes as well.  For example, recycling was a popular topic this year amongst many of the elementary schools.  The kids who were riding on the vehicle looked like they were having a great time.  I envied them their experience- what kid does not want to be in a parade?

It just goes to show that you do not have to travel far to experience the new and unusual.  Many times there are, in our own backyards, interesting and adventurous experiences to be had.  It is simply a matter of paying attention and making the effort to go and participate in them.  I am not sure why it is harder when you don’t have to travel far to do it…..