Backlash Ends Plan to Move Sculpture by Granville Bridge

Trans Am Rapture used to stand near Science World

There used to be a curious piece of public art featuring a stack of cars that stood along Quebec Street near Science World in 2015 as part of the Vancouver Biennale.

Called Trans Am Rapture, formerly named Trans Am Totem, it features five salvaged cars, including a Trans Am on a Cedar trunk.

Then the 10-metre high art piece weighing over 25,000 pounds was taken down in 2021 to be cleaned because it had accumulated a lot of bird poop!

Birds liked to flock at the public art sculpture

Finally there was word the City was going to relocate the sculpture near the south end of the Granville Street Bridge between West 4th and West 5th Avenues, but residents in the area were incensed.

"They're treating our neighbourhood as a storage locker for a piece of art they don't know what to do with," said Darlene Forst, who lives across the street from where the art piece would be located. She was concerned the stack of cars would block her views.

Forst started an online petition against the sculpture being moved to the area, and now the City has backed down.

"The City of Vancouver is ceasing work on the reinstallation of Trans Am Rapture," said a press release. 

"The decision was made by the city manager's office following further consideration of the size and scale of the artwork in relation to the site. City staff have been asked to revisit previously assessed locations and explore potential new ones that can better accommodate the artwork."

The art work was supposed to move to this spot

So it seems the City gets antsy when there's organised pushback and backs down very quickly. Why was there no consultation to start with? However the concrete foundation for the sculpture was already made so that will stay for a subsequent smaller public art work...

Trans Am Rapture was created by artists Marcus Bowcott and Helene Aspinall as a commentary on car culture and how urban life is compounding pressures on the environment.

The giant sculpture became part of the City's public art collection in 2019 with a $250,000 donation from billionaire Chip Wilson, founder of Lululemon, and his wife Shannon.