Section: Art
Written By: Seyth Miersma
May 6th, 2008 10:15 AM
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This incredibly detailed “nokian” tire is actually a cake created by a Russian artisan (or bakery, we’re not really sure) called Zhanna located in St. Petersburg. Though we don’t have any real details about the operation, we did find a whole passel of additional amazing confections by the talented baker, at the laughable haha.nu. We’ll admit that not all of these cakes have an automotive theme but we were too blown away not to share them with you. Our favorite has got to be the cash machine, enjoy.
+ haha.nu
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Written By: Seyth Miersma
March 28th, 2008 11:00 AM
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Further proof, should one need it, that the love for Harley-Davidson extends across the globe, can be found emphatically in this brilliant wicker bike.
We know absolutely nothing in the way of details about the bike, as the website the images were found on seems to be entirely in Russian. It’s easy to see that the bike was created by a craftsperson of the first order though, as it doesn’t seem to be lacking in two-wheel detail. Have a closer look at the bike in our gallery below and then tell us how it strikes you in comments.
+ Snegopad
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Written By: David Yang
March 26th, 2008 12:00 PM
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For the welfare of its citizens, Jingdezhen, a small city in China’s Jiangxi Province with over 1700 years of history producing china, rolled out its new traffic lights on the 10th of March. As we can see in the picture, the new traffic lights poles are made of sheer porcelain. The patterns on the poles are from Qingming Shanghe Tu (Along the River during the Ching-ming Festival), a famous Chinese artwork painted by court painter Zhang Zeduan from the Northern Song Dynasty (960 to 1127 A.D.).
The new traffic lights will, no doubt, give the local drivers and tourists some refreshment and pleasure. But guys please bear in mind that it’s porcelain. So do drive carefully!
(Click on the images below to see parts of the painting that inspired the new Chinese traffic poles as well as a few other examples of civic china.)
If you’ve got an idea for Question of the Day, a funny photo for Caption It, or just want to share a news tip, let us know at windingroadtips@gmail.com
Written By: Seyth Miersma
March 21st, 2008 11:00 AM
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Nissan’s Denki Cube Concept is an electric vehicle dressed up in a rather fancy and futuristic package, but it’s got nothing on its art project brothers. These JDM Cubes have been used as a sort of blank canvass for the artist’s brush, with their unmistakable blocky shapes broken up with striations, patterns, and slashes of color.
Have a look at some of the Nissan Art Cube examples in our galleries below, and then give us your take on the project in comments.
Written By: Seyth Miersma
March 14th, 2008 11:00 AM
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Artists Mary Carothers and Sue Wrbican have created an interesting piece of automotive art on the grounds of Michigan Tech University, located on the western side of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
In an effort to raise discussion about “society’s dependence on mobility” the pair has undertaken piece of work they call the Frozen Car Project. The car in question is a 1978 Chevy Nova, selected for its significance relative to the oil crunch of the 1970’s. The artists, with help from a variety of local volunteers, have frozen the Nova into a solid block of ice, and have plans to chronicle the work as nature takes it toll on it, including the inevitable spring thaw (any time now please).
While the Frozen Car Project may be slightly dubious as a political statement, it’s a fairly impressive looking piece, with the frosty Nova seeming to burst out of a solid ice block. Have a look in our gallery below and give us your impressions in comments.
+ The Frozen Car
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Written By: Seyth Miersma
February 28th, 2008 4:30 PM
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New York’s Museum of Modern Art has, at one time or another, displayed some of history’s most beautiful and interesting automobiles. Set to join that exclusive club is a Mercedes-Benz concept called Bionic.
Many WINDING ROAD readers may remember the Bionic concept from its launch in the summer of 2005. At the time, M-B was exploring the limits of aerodynamic design by using one of nature’s most slippery creatures, the boxfish, as a model for a high-efficiency vehicle. The resultant Bionic was able to achieve a remarkable 0.19 coefficient of drag, as well as an uncanny resemblance to the fish it was emulating.
Now MoMA is anxious to sing the praises of the aquatic Mercedes concept, as part of its “Design and the Elastic Mind” exhibition. The show, which will be open through May 12, focuses on the rapid evolution of design and human life in recent decades. If you won’t be able to make it to NYC for the MoMA exhibit, at least you can check out the Mercedes (and boxfish), in our gallery below.
+ CarDesignNews: Mercedes-Benz Bionic car at MoMA
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Written By: Seyth Miersma
February 23rd, 2008 12:00 PM
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Art house publication Visionaire has been producing multi-format albums of fashion and art in limited editions since 1991. Though in the past these collections have featured designers, art directors, and image-makers, its latest creation focuses on music and sound.
Visionaire 53 is a collection of five 12-inch vinyl “picture disc” records packaged inside a sleek domed case. While we’re sure that the selection of sound pieces by artists ranging from U2 to Cat Power are riveting, we’re slightly more interested in the record player provided to listen to them.
The compilation comes with what’s called a Mini Clubman “Vinyl Killer” record player. The portable music maker is battery operated, “driving” along the groves in the record to produce sound. There’s a tiny speaker built right into the top of the miniature Clubman, and though we can’t imagine the sound is terribly powerful, we can’t help but really want one anyway. Unfortunately, Visionaire 53 runs a steep $250 for one of the 4,000 total copies to be sold. Perhaps not a bad deal for such a convincingly unique collection, but certainly more than most will pay for a Mini souvenir, record player or no.
+ Visionaire
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Written By: Seyth Miersma
February 17th, 2008 2:30 PM
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The Ga people of the West African nation of Ghana believe that coffins should be made to reflect the essence of the deceased person destined to occupy it. While traditionally the intricate coffins were made to look like everything from animals to food, modern themed examples have become increasingly popular.
Online market place eShopAfrica specializes in connecting African artisans with western customers, and has been the purveyor of specialty Ga Coffins in the past. We stumbled upon these two automotive examples, a Ferrari F50 replica, and an utterly charming condensed Subaru WRX STI (said to be built for BBC show Top Gear). While the coffins are far from perfect scale models, the homemade detail, and handmade quality of the pieces is remarkable.
Our guess is that most people ordering these bespoke coffins, which are available in full (six-feet) and half (three-feet) sizes, are using them more for decorative trunks than final resting places. Though we do think that a Ga style funeral would probably be a much more lively affair than most of us are used to.
+ eShopAfrica
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Written By: Phil Floraday
January 28th, 2008 5:00 PM
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Lego building blocks have been a part of childhood for 50 years now. The company was founded on January 28, 1958. Countless vehicles have been built from Legos and we’re hoping for another 50 years of fun for the folks at Lego. Feel free to share your Lego stories with us in comments.
+ WINDING ROAD: The making of the Audi R10 LEGO cover
Written By: Seyth Miersma
January 25th, 2008 4:30 PM
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The Platform21 exhibition in Amsterdam is said to showcase contemporary issues that will be relative to the future. In this installment, titled Joyriding, automotive themes are the focus of the efforts of design and art school graduates.
The exhibition is a rather whimsical take on concept cars for the future, offering scale models, animated movies, even remote controlled cars. No effort is made by the artists to put forth practical ideas; rather the elements of Joyriding have been created to provoke conversation and thought.
One of the features of the show is the wooden, three-wheeled vehicle called eMotio by artist Hugo Vrijdag. The concept is said to be driven by shifting your weight from side to side, and seems to draw inspiration from pre-war open-wheel racecars.
Platform21 = Joyriding runs through February 3, so if travels bring you to the lowlands in the near future, check it out.
+ Bornrich: Platform21 - Fantasy fleet of cars of the future
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Written By: Seyth Miersma
January 25th, 2008 10:10 AM
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Artist Ptolemy has been creating his unique brand of “found art” for some time now, shaping discarded or lost hubcaps into various, mostly aquatic, animal forms.
His creations show an eerie blend of technology and the natural world, really capturing the shape and movements of complex fish, but frozen in metal. Ptolemy works exclusively in recycled material, claiming that all of his hubcaps are found, and usually on the side of the road. Because of this, the works of art are likely to bear “the scars of their previous lives,” which adds a sense of history to the pieces.
Click on the thumbnails below to investigate a gallery of the Hubcap Creatures (which are for sale, obviously), and then tell us what you think in comments.
+ Hubcap Creatures
If you’ve got an idea for Question of the Day, a funny photo for Caption It, or just want to share a news tip, let us know at windingroadtips@gmail.com
Written By: Stan Baldwin
January 12th, 2008 12:00 PM
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“Rat Rods” are a modern return to the foundations of the hotrod phenomena. At the San Francisco Rod, Custom, and Motorcycle Show there are a ton of near-perfect custom cars. Fender wells in gleaming powder coat, mirror finish chrome, upholstery, and paint created by world famous experts, all lavished upon prosaic family transportation built in the last century. Such largess costs money, lots of it. Love the creativity and stunning results, but the original idea was to take your dad’s hand-me-down Model T and scrounge stuff to make it look good, maybe even go faster.
Over the past many years, a rebellion against all things polished has produced today’s rat rod culture. With more time than money, and desirous of a cool ride of their own, rat rod creators source parts from junk yards and apply unbridled imagination to come up with their unique machines.
Next >
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So Long Super Aguri: Financial Woes Cause Formula One Team to Call it A Day
