Brake Burns as Mechanized Folk Art
Telstar Logistics has been accused of being a wee bit obsessive about the things which we obsess about. (Is that a tautology? Maybe, but who cares.) That our interests may gravitate toward the obscure or esoteric is of little concern; what matters is that they encourage us to see what's right in front of us in new and different ways.
This is also why we find it easy to appreciate the enthusiasms of other kindred spirits who find an odd beauty in the mundane and the mechanical.
Take the All Good! blog, for example. Introduced to us recently by our friend Kevin Kelly, All Good! is about:
"Brake burns, community supper reviews, fireman's breakfasts, truck tractors and all the other things that make [Nova Scotia's] South Shore great."
Now, there's a lot to love in that lineup, but it's the brake burns part that fascinates us most. And what's a brake burn?
For the uninitiated....burnouts, brake stands, brodies or brake burns, it's all about rubber on the road! I think that brake burns are like the latent art form of the 'locals' in Lunenburg County.
So there you go. If you've ever marveled at the mysterious beauty of the brake burn, you can take comfort in knowing that you now have an archivist.
LINK:
Brake Burns (blog posts about brake burns from All Good!
(IMAGES: All photos above from All Good!)
This comes to mind:
http://www.hackaday.com/2008/06/09/steven-lauries-art-of-the-motor/
Posted by: friism | 20 June 2008 at 07:49 AM
I was in NYC last December and saw an exhibition at the Guggenheim titled "Spiritual America", a retrospective of stuff by Richard Prince. He's experimented with lots of different styles and mediums over the years, but some of the more recent stuff included simple photos of brake burns. Exhibition overview here.
Posted by: Allan | 20 June 2008 at 07:54 AM
Wow. It *is* like the Richard Prince series. Is he from Nova Scotia? *wink*
Posted by: Telstar Logistics | 20 June 2008 at 10:49 AM
there's actually another guy who's done burnouts in parking lots w/ colored tires and done photos/prints of the results. can't recall his name and google is no help. Doesn't look like r. prince but could be.
although, google does reveal that they're doing SCENTED tires now. crazy. AINT THAT AMERICA
Posted by: rajbot | 20 June 2008 at 08:16 PM
you may find this interesting: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/16/movies/16skid.html
Posted by: Sean | 09 December 2008 at 12:03 PM
Great tip, Sean! Thank you!
Posted by: Telstar Logistics | 09 December 2008 at 12:24 PM