Art Car Projects

compiled as a part of World's Largest Things educational division

Art Cars are unique expression of public art - while each and every one is completely different, there are lots of them in a large Art Car community. Building a class project art car is a great way to introduce your students to a whole community of artists! This is my own Art Car, "Scout".

Tips and tricks for building art cars are everywhihere, but one of the best resources comes from the Baltimore American Visionary Art Museum - they've complied a **GREAT** "Road Scholars Art Car Kit", in a 21 page PDF file to take you through it step by step.

 

Student Cars

Some of the most amazing collaborative student cars are from Houston, under the direction of Rebecca Bass. This creation "Live to Ride" by Waltrip High School was a 2005 entry into the Orange Show Foundation's annual Art Car parade, and won top honors. Here's her story, compliments of ArtCars.com.

These are other Student Art Car examples, showing a variety of techniques and motivations. Try it! You'll like it! And, you'll most likely be able to partner with a commnity-based arts organization for help or events to share your unique creation.

Left: ArtCarTraz - Under the direction of Anne Kristof, she took this car around to juvenile detention centers, letting the inmates express themselves on separate sections. The work gave voice to an underserved population, creating a network of encouragement for people who've been separated from society.

Right: Wired Wheels from Herod Elementary is a fun, dimensional Student Art Car - completely covered in springie, sproingie wires, it makes you smile just looking at it! Under the direction of Marla Roberson.

Paper Art Car


For a smaller, in-house project, here's a great little paper VW Bus to print, fold, and embellish.

Print out the PDF on heavy stock, cut and assemble, and use pencils or markers to create individualized mini-examples of Painted Art Cars. Caution: it takes some fine morot skills to produce on a small scale, but if you blow the patterns up to fit an 11" x 17" paper, it becomes much easier for younger students...

Created by a German artist, you can find more paper vehicles and buildings and wonderful things through his site. CAUTION: It's all in German, so bring in the language class! Amazing projects.

Art Car resources


For more Art Car images, check out the oldest and largest Art Car parade from Houston. There's a photo gallery listed HERE, showing more than 300 creations of the Art Car kind.

Harrod Blank has two books, a video, a PBS special, and another film coming out soon documenting the Art Car experience. In addition to numerous online resources, here's the king of Art Car lore... All available through his Camera Van site.

 

For workshops, class visits, or more information feel free to contact us:
World's Largest Things, Inc.
Erika, creator and curator
PO Box 101
Lucas KS 67648
info@worldslargestthings.com

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