Art cars: bejewelled and fuelled

Transformers the movie was all well and good but what everyone failed to notice was the distinct lack of style amongst the array of manipulated vehicles. A gem here, a lick of paint there can turn a boring car into a fashion thumbs up. Now there’s an idea.

Unfortunately Salford’s outdoor performance specialists, Walk The Plank, got there first. This weekend some of the most decorative chassis will be sashaying their way from Cathedral Gardens to Albert Square in the UK’s first Art Car Parade.

Michael Trainor, Curator of Art Cars 2007 said: “An Art Car is any vehicle which has been re-imagined, re-styled, re modelled, or completely metamorphosed by an artist. Vehicles have been decorated, sculpted, adorned, illuminated or bejewelled.”

These babies are enough to make P Diddy’s pimped out hummer look humdrum. Vehicles on show will include Tone Float – a milk float transformed into a gentle melodic instrument with its cargo of milk bottles acting as tuned percussion and Tiki Love Mobile – a mosaic-adorned automobile, complete with palm tree and Hula girls. Up to 30 cars created by artists from across the country will take to the streets at 11am on Saturday 8 September to wow and no doubt confuse passers-by. Cars will be judged with £2000 worth of prizes awarded.

For more information please visit www.artcarparade.co.uk