Shep - 2012 Houston Art Car Parade
The annual weekend of wackiness that is the Houston Art Car Parade just wrapped its 25th anniversary. As always, the entries didn’t disappoint. E3 Spark Plugs congratulates all the winners of the world’s biggest art car event.
Debuting in 1988, the Houston Art Car Parade originally featured 40 vehicles seen by an estimated 2,000 people. The relatively small event proved a big hit and by the next year, parade entries doubled and crowds swelled to tens of thousands. In 1989, the event got a major public relations boost from art car maker Harrod Blank, who eventually would write two books and produce two films on art cars. Soon, caravans of art cars were traveling from clear across the country, thousands of miles just to appear in the parade.
That momentum has continued over the years. The three-day 2012 event featured more than 250 vehicles and other entries, including unicycles, lawnmowers and go-carts. Participants hail from throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico and are not just recognized artists, but students, organizations and fun-loving Jane and John Does. Upwards of 250,000 spectators turn out each year to watch the parade.
Similarly inspired events include the Tulsa ArtCar Weekend going through Sunday, and the Minnesota ArtCar + ArtBike Parade slated for Saturday, July 21.
E3 Spark Plugs shares a few of its favorite 2012 Houston Art Car Parade entries below. Which was your favorite? If you attended the parade, share your pics on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page. And be sure to catch a screening of Art Car: The Movie, a documentary that follows Rebecca Bass and her high school class as they prepare an entry for the 2010 Houston Art Car Parade.
