DEREK ARNOLD

“From Bedrock to Bartertown”

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"From Bedrock to Bartertown" was built in 1995 with the help of Baltimore's Festival of the Arts: Artscape. Since then it has been gaining national and international recognition as a cool car! The car is natural and organic, a mix of the past and the future. In the car's name, Bedrock refers to the past and is influenced by the Flintstone's. Bartertown is inspired by the Mad Max movies.

This art car's chassis is a 1972 V.W. Super Beetle, and here's a bit of history. At some point, someone turned the original Beetle into a Bradley GT. It had a fiberglass body and there were plans to build a hybrid electric motor that got 100 miles to the gallon, but it didn't happen. I pulled the car out of the bushes where it had been sitting for twelve years. I used to change the tarp over the motor every once in a while. After I constructed From Bedrock to Bartertown, a couple friends Bryan and Bill came over and we got it running in 45 minutes.

The materials that make up the body are chunks of oak, sycamore, maple, cherry and other wood. These materials are combined with disc plow and combine parts, pieces of a chimney flue and various other scrap metal. It has safety glass and improved suspension to hold any extra weight. The back end opens up to get access to the motor. Of course it runs!!!

Exhibitions

Baltimore's Festival of the Arts: Artscape

Lead East, The world's biggest 50's party, Parcippany, New Jersey 1997

Houston Orange Show & International Festival 1996 Judge's Choice & Parade Participant's Choice

Brickyard 400 Rolling Review, Indianapolis, Indiana 1996

Thanksgiving Parade: American Visionary Art Museum, Baltimore Maryland 1996

American Visionary Art Museum opening reception for "Wind in My Hair"

Publications and Media

Discovery Channel: Home and Leisure

Weird Wheels: Canadian Television, episode 1001 & 1002; Yaletown Entertainment Corp.

Wild Wheels II: A book and movie by Harrod Blank 2001

Umelec: Monthly for Contemporary Art: Czech Republic, March 1998

Driving the Dream: A film by Harrod Blank 1998

Art Cars: Revolutionary Movement Published by the Ineri Foundation 1997

Dan Rodricks for Breakfast Channel 2 WMAR Television Studios January 1997

VW Trends Magazine September 1996

Autoweek Magazine July 22, 1996