It’s a little more radical than the traditional accessory fitment of a sunvisor or a set of widened wheels, but then the spikes that have been driven through a trio of identical and immaculate Chevrolet Bel Airs were done in the name of art. Yup, really.
The 1955s Chevys – all in distinctive two-tone Gypsy Red and Shoreline Beige livery – have gone on display in Houston, Texas as part of a work by a radical artist.
The Bel Air Trilogy is artist and sculptor Walter De Maria’s efforts to customise one of Chevrolet’s most iconic shapes.
The windscreen of each car has been carefully pierced to allow a 12ft shaft of stainless steel – each of which is square, circular and triangular respectively – to be passed horizontally through the cars’ interiors with the simple three-dimensional profile of the rods intended to complement some of the linear qualities in the Chevy’s design.
Califiornia-born De Maria enjoys a reputation for unusual art installations, having previously created works such as Mile Long Drawing, a 1969 composition featuring two parallel mile-long chalk marks set 12ft apart on the surface of the Mojave desert.
The new piece is part of a trilogy of works – one painting and two sculptures – by De Maria on display in the Menil Collection until 8 January.
