Warbird Information Exchange

Well it is located on a major highway ( Broad St) in the 4th largest city in the country. Its public exposure will be to far many more than you might imagine. Who knows where the seed of an idea is planted? It's unfortunate that you only highlight the negative and fail to see the positive.

For what it's worth, I attempted to get a drive going to have this "art" removed. After a few conversations with the Art Academy and the artist, it was pretty clear they were of shallow minds and non-sympathetic to it's display in CDF colors. One of the artist's complaints was the amount of time it took a half dozen people or more to "hand sand" most of the paint off. I'm sorry, I don't buy that one for a minute....Klean-strip has worked pretty fast for me in the past. A bare aluminum airframe wouldn't have pi**ed me off. Leaving it in identifying paint and markings went way over the line as far as art is concerned.

After that, I contacted CalFire (Admin's and the legal department), got some horrified reactions from several other groups and some letters written and sent. To make a long story short, unless legal action was taken, the S-2 would remain as it stands. The CDF legal eagles were willing to make some noise, but budgetary issues prevented them from doing much more than that.

All said and done, I did get two free passes to see this for myself. I kindly thanked them - but said if I came to see it, I'd be driving a large tow truck. That, my friends, was the end of that.

Tom Janney

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...not a complete idiot, some parts ARE missing!

Tom, thanks for sharing your point of view. I agree that is is distasteful to leave it in the markings it wore while fighting fires. Perhaps the "artist" should have put some of their own artwork on the plane. I imagine there would be outrage if the artist had done something similar with a firetruck.

In general as an airplane turn art project it dosent bother me. I like the idea of the general public seeing some aircraft related art.

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Share your story: Rutgers Oral History Archive http://oralhistory.rutgers.edu/

They call that "art"? Seems very tasteless and disrespectful. Oh never mind, it's in Philly! Won't take long and it will be destroyed!

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A&P/I.A., A.A.S./Aviation Maintenance technology
Warbird salvage/recovery
One day I'll get that P-40!

Very Doubtful that will happen. Its in a very well patrolled area near Police and JAIL'S. LOL !

One of the indicators of a good piece of art is if it raises questions and reactions.

I like it.

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rreis

If you want pictures, see rreis@flickr

It's in very bad taste, and I can foresee tagging, arson fires, a homeless crash pad, things that would cause either the academy by itself, or at the behest of the city, to haul it off as a 'public nuisance'. Just wait until some curtain tugger who's mother isn't paying attention takes a header off the tail and she sues the crap out of the academy.
Why didn't they just mount the nose and the props busting through the brick wall in a 'spray' of bricks and make it truly tasteless like that proposed condo in S. Korea that looked like the towers being brought down?

The photo IS impressive, but with great & artful lighting you turn a rusty trash can or a full Dumpster into a prize winning photo.

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Don't make me go get my flying monkeys-

Shame you can't see is the security cameras or the on foot security . Not to mention the high activity of the Police in the area.

I created a location dossier for this one...
Aerial Visuals - Location Dossier - Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts - S-2

Does anyone have any idea which S-2 this is? I can't quite read the c/r on the fuse.

Mike

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Mike R. Henniger
Aviation Enthusiast & Photographer
http://www.AerialVisuals.ca
http://www.facebook.com/AerialVisuals

Do you want to find locations of displayed, stored or active aircraft? Then start with the The Locator.
Do you want to find or contribute to the documented history of an aircraft? If so then start with the Airframes Database.

Mike, look here:

http://www.airliners.net/search/photo.s ... ers.net%2F

Jiggers,
Never underestimate the ability of the public to do really stupid things, look @ the idiots who rob banks and stores with 37 video cameras focused on them, or who turn up @ the airport and try to get knives or guns (or cupcakes) past the groper squad.

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Don't make me go get my flying monkeys-

No I never underestimate the stupidity of the public !

Here is a link to the museum.

http://www.pafa.org/

As a side note, I visited the Museum a few years back to admire the architecture. It is a gorgeous building.

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Share your story: Rutgers Oral History Archive http://oralhistory.rutgers.edu/

Obviously controversial. And art that is remembered for more than a week after the unveiling is just that. It's a striking visual for sure. There was a similar outrage by muscle car fans when a musuem (don't remember which one) had a Chevelle placed vertically on a stake in a pool of water. Very striking visually and vehemently hated by people who hold such objects so dear.

I don't get the "greenhouse" repurposing part. How does he expect sunlight to go though the airframe for these plants they want to grow. I don't see any extra windows.

I view the "crashed" aspect and the fire fighting markings vital to his concept, so that plants can grow from the "wreckage". He repurposes objects. That's his thing. We are all familiar with the repurposing of aircraft wrecks by Mother Nature. Whether or not he will admit that is another story.

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Sure, Charles Lindbergh flew the plane... but Tom Rutledge built the engine!

Visit Django Studios online or Facebook!

I don't think it's offensive, tasteless, or any of the other adjectives thrown around in this thread.

It's not my cup o'tea as far as art is concerned, but then again most of the stuff in any random art gallery isn't, either.

If I had a family member that died in a CDF or a Tracker crash, I'd be thinking of much better ways to cherish their memory than looking for a way to be offended by this. So what -- it's metal that used to be an airplane and used to be a hulk rotting away. I'm way more irritated by a formerly beautiful hulk sitting in a field rotting away than I am one that at least serves some sort of purpose!

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