|
|
|---|
| Back |
Front Clips, IL, 1993 Like most boys in the 1950's, I grew up reading about trucks, steam shovels and earth moving equipment. In the simple illustrations of children's books I began to absorb archetypal design elements: imposing radiator shells, flat raked wind-shields, and the intriguing complexity of bolt patterns on angular sheet metal. They spoke of elemental power and functional utility, and I developed a romantic notion that the use and care of these beasts might be a lofty calling. Never having completely grown out of that phase, I collect and restore Dodge Power Wagons, a four-wheel-drive vehicle developed for WWII and which continued in production as a pickup truck until 1968. These are massively designed trucks, whose ponderous progress through the world is accompanied by high levels of engine and power train noise and the smells of hot oily fluids that leak from many gear cases. They are drafty and cold in winter and hot in summer, and they ride like stones. I truly love these trucks. Legends of Herculean feats of strength and endurance proliferate among a loosely knit family of collectors and enthusiasts. The stories are mostly true, as I have come to know from the experience of using Power Wagons for years. It's true they are slow but most of the jobs they are intended for do not require speed. There is also the pleasure of working on them. No aesthetic decisions here, just clear-cut mechanics: strained muscles and bleeding knuckles pitted against rusted fine thread bolts and the simple precision of ignition and carburetion systems. It is ultimately satisfying to see thousands of restored, adjusted, well-lubricated parts laboring in harmony once again. There is an aesthetic side, of course, as there is in everything visual. Sometimes when walking back to the Dodge from a job in the woods, the light strikes the truck just right and it takes on an odd significance, becoming the quintessential truck. Or, when prowling a junkyard, a crate of old differentials captures my eye. Out comes the camera and with it the endless visual decisions, searching for the perfect viewpoint, the strongest statement.
|
All Photography © |
