On Dec 31st 2010, art and technology intersected at an important moment in time for Houston, presaging a rich future leading the way in illuminated and kinetic art. Many of the vehicles in this year’s illuminated art car parade use recent advancements in light technology in new ways to create moving sculptures that may later be viewed as forerunners of a wave of new and exciting technology driven art.
Gloworama, originally conceived of by a merry band of art car artists at ACOH as an extravaganza of illuminated and fire art cars, rocked Houston on this New Year’s Eve 2011. In spite of forecasts of rain, the illuminated art car parade rolled on time and to big crowds lining Avenidas de Americas for a great kick-off to a kick-ass night of other technology driven art like the tesla-coil performances by ArcAttack and a cool 3D mapping light show by LD Systems.
The art car artists in Houston have been major cross-pollinators of art flowing between Houston and the Burning Man festival in the dessert of Nevada which culminates in a huge burn or bonfire of a gigantic art installation made specifically for the event. Once a year, tens of thousands of participants gather in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert to create Black Rock City, dedicated to community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance. Mutant Vehicles are a major part of the Burning Man experience, and Houston’s art car artists have historically been major contributors to the mutant vehicles at the festival which roam the playa by day and especially at night, adding to the magical experience with raucous music and weird lighting effects. Art car artists also have historically contributed to the Burn on the final night.
Using fire and propane the most experienced of these artists have been incorporating fire effects in their art for years. Those artists have returned to Houston with new creative ways of adding fire effects to their vehicles and have taken their mobile illuminated art to such Texas art festivals, as Art Outside, Burning Flipside and Mischievia.
The advent of new technology, including LED low wattage lighting, has just recently made other forms of mobile lighted art a possibility. Now with an extra fully charged 12 volt battery, art car artists can add under glow, LED rope lighting, and other fun lighted elements to their art cars. Utilizing these concepts, the art car artists at Burning Man and in Houston also incorporate these new energy efficient elements into costuming which lights up, flashes and changes colors.
In 2009, art car artists in Houston banded together to form Art Cars of Houston, Inc. an artist driven 501-3c nonprofit organization. In 2009 we produced Gloworama on Thanksgiving Day weekend in conjunction with Autorama.
The newest incarnation of Gloworama on Dec 31st2010, made it possible for the art car artists to share with Houston some of their favorite burn artists like ArcAttack, a tesla-coil performance and Luminosity, a Houston based fire spinning group. Televised on ABC 13, Gloworama was a great beginning for new illuminated and mobile art in Houston.
We will be showcasing the wonderful vehicles and artists that rolled in this year’s parade right here every week. Watch for our posts! Subscribe to our news feed, follow us on twitter and befriend us on facebook. You can even donate to the cause on paypal!
