An invisible car?

May 5, 2009 10:54 AM

Sara Watson's invisible car
posted by Chocolate Pickle (45 comments total)

The third picture shows how she did it.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 10:55 AM on May 5, 2009

She looks mighty please with herself. I would be, too.
posted by owtytrof at 11:06 AM on May 5, 2009

If she throws her invisible knapsack in the trunk will it cause a rift in the space-time continuum?
posted by dersins at 11:10 AM on May 5, 2009 [2 favorites]

I think that last picture has been faked, or the Watson Quadruplets all shop at the same silly hat shop.
posted by MiltonRandKalman at 11:16 AM on May 5, 2009

Reminds me of the transparent computer screens. Which is to say: cool!
posted by arcticwoman at 11:19 AM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

Well this certainly explains why Fred couldn't find his used car.
posted by blue_beetle at 11:19 AM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

Well this certainly explains why Fred couldn't find his used car.
Having just read this post as well, I can't help but hear fred's comments in the voice of Dom DeLuise.
posted by Electric Dragon at 11:38 AM on May 5, 2009

Video.
posted by Horace Rumpole at 11:39 AM on May 5, 2009

Man, Transparent screens were 2005? It's sad to know that my excitement is 4 years too late.

Also: more story on the stunt/art project.
posted by filthy light thief at 11:42 AM on May 5, 2009

My Mom, who is too cool to send me fluffy kitten pics or that Footprints poem, sent me this the other day and I almost posted it. Very cool.
posted by misha at 11:59 AM on May 5, 2009

The third picture shows what's going on, but not how she did it. A lot of running back and forth or did she project the image onto the car or what?
posted by DU at 12:10 PM on May 5, 2009

this artist is clearly driven.
posted by the aloha at 12:26 PM on May 5, 2009 [5 favorites]

is "recycling lives" the name of the store that the car is parked in front of, graffiti, or a slight imperfection that snarky metafilterists will crucify watson over?
posted by the aloha at 12:31 PM on May 5, 2009

It's a neat installation, but of course, my first reaction was to want to find where it was and crash my car into it, just so I could say, "What? I didn't even see it there..."

Because I'm nothing if not predictable.
posted by quin at 12:42 PM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

what a pain in the ass it has to be to park it in the right spot!
posted by HuronBob at 12:44 PM on May 5, 2009 [2 favorites]

Make sure you get to work before Sara because it takes her *forever* to park that thing.
posted by cairnish at 12:45 PM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

Jinx!
posted by cairnish at 12:46 PM on May 5, 2009

The third picture shows what's going on, but not how she did it. A lot of running back and forth or did she project the image onto the car or what?

Pick vantage point, mark it (tripod), take hi-res photo (digital?), mount projector onto tripod, paint car, return to vantage point with camera again and snap pics.

This is one of those "wow cool" sort of things that is definitely visually impressive and deserves high marks for a student, but is not particularly ground-breaking, and I'm sad to say I've seen it more than once before. It reminds me, to a certain degree, of Trompe-l'œil, another art technique which is really cool, but around since the ancient times.

That said, a little less mugging for the camera would have been nice. If you're showing off your art, then why are you putting yourself front-and-center, with your face taking up more room in the frame than the car?
posted by explosion at 12:47 PM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

what a pain in the ass it has to be to park it in the right spot!

Seriously, the first time she moves this car it's done. She'd have to put the car up on jacks to get the tires right again.
posted by bpm140 at 12:51 PM on May 5, 2009

Bah, she totally ripped off The Muppet Movie.
posted by MrMoonPie at 12:54 PM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

File under mildly impressed.

Cool but not ground-breaking as someone mentioned.
posted by gnash at 1:10 PM on May 5, 2009

This is groundbreaking.
posted by everichon at 1:24 PM on May 5, 2009 [2 favorites]

How dare an artist create something cool but not groundbreaking! We should make sure everyone understands this breaks no new ground.
posted by brain_drain at 1:26 PM on May 5, 2009 [7 favorites]

This is similar to what this guy does.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 1:30 PM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

"Recycling Lives" is the name of the business that donated the car.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 1:34 PM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

I saw this earlier this week and thought it would make a good post, then I saw this article and thought I could do a whole invisibility themed thing. Alas, I dragged my feet and didn't get around to collecting the rest of the links.
posted by Bango Skank at 1:39 PM on May 5, 2009

Well done, but it would've been even better if they blocked out the front grille with a flat surface before painting.

Of course, if the paintjob were perfect, there'd be nothing to show us--it would be indistinguishable from a photo of her standing in front of the parking lot. Trompe l'oeil relies on the oeil not being completely tromped for its effectiveness.
posted by yoink at 1:43 PM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

chocolate pickle, thank you.
posted by the aloha at 1:53 PM on May 5, 2009

Only in a leap from the lion's head will she prove her worth.
posted by cashman at 1:53 PM on May 5, 2009

This is groundbreaking.
posted by mazola at 1:57 PM on May 5, 2009

The last picture looks like a Pimp My Ride shot.
posted by P.o.B. at 2:14 PM on May 5, 2009

Damn. I misread it as Sam Waterston. Still, pretty awesome.
posted by spec80 at 2:21 PM on May 5, 2009

I'd hit it.

Her car I mean. While trying to park my car. Because hers is invisible.
posted by nicwolff at 2:26 PM on May 5, 2009 [4 favorites]

I was about 9 or 10 when I learned that both basketball backboards and Corvettes are each formed from fiberglass. I've wanted a clear car ever since.
posted by Ynoxas at 3:03 PM on May 5, 2009

I wonder if it works with binocular vision, or if it's just off enough to be annoying. In particular, the depth of the car seems like it would really screw it up. When people do this fakery with monitor screens, they have the virtue of being flat.
posted by smackfu at 4:02 PM on May 5, 2009

Don't think it's paint. I think it's a vinyl wrap printed on a huge vinyl-car-wrap-plotter.

The "art" here would be generating the vantage points whereby the car looks legit from front-on. I bet that, much like the 3-D sidewalk art, it looks completely weird from other angles.

But nah, not paint.
posted by TomMelee at 4:41 PM on May 5, 2009

ok, well, looking again maybe I'm wrong. Sure looks like a wrap to me, though.
posted by TomMelee at 4:42 PM on May 5, 2009

It's a tad easier to say something is no big deal than it is to actually do it.
posted by digsrus at 5:41 PM on May 5, 2009

She fooled you all. She painted dark and light impressions of a car on the wall and ground. :D
posted by jfrancis at 6:48 PM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

I think I'm in luv a little.

*runs off to find adorable, wacky girl with extraordinary patience*
posted by flotson at 7:16 PM on May 5, 2009

When you camera project a background onto a foreground object you get her car.

When you camera project a foreground onto a background object you get this
posted by jfrancis at 8:06 PM on May 5, 2009

I am so tired of this story - so what, not that well executed, YAWN. Really slow news week??? Can we move on or back to the torture memos or cats playing pianos?
posted by hooptycritter at 4:30 AM on May 6, 2009

Bah. I did the same thing three years ago. Here's my invisible car.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 9:07 AM on May 6, 2009

so what, not that well executed

Your favorite trompe l'oeil sucks.
posted by flotson at 2:38 PM on May 6, 2009

No, I can see the car clearly.
posted by stuffedspacedog at 10:59 PM on May 6, 2009