Forevertron: World’s Largest Scrap Metal Sculpture by Dr. Evermor
From a distance, Dr. Evermor’s "park" in Wisconsin looks like a junk yardfull of twisted metals and rusted machines, but it houses one of the coolest sculptures ever: Forevertron. Standing at 120 feet wide, 60 feet deep, 50-foot tall, and weighing 320 ton, this behemoth of an artwork is billed as the world’s largest scrap metal sculpture.
All components of Forevertron are salvaged from old bits and pieces of machineries between 50 to 100 years old, and are welded and bolted together for stability. Its components include a pair of bipolar electrical dynamos constructed by Thomas Edison in the late 19th century and a decontamination chamber from the Apollo space mission. The top of the sculpture is a copper-clad glass ball, meant to be Dr. Evermor’s space capsule!
Image: Madolan [Flickr]
Another picture, showing the scale of Forevertron. Image: LiveALittle.org [Flickr]
Close-up photo of the Forevertron. Image: florador [Flickr]
Dr. Evermor is actually artist Tom Every, 70, who used to be an industrial wrecking and salvage expert. He spent decades collecting scrapped machines and other mechanical ephemera. In 1983, Every retired from his business, renamed himself Dr. Evermor and began to build Forevertron and other whimsical scrap metal structures.
Ever the prankster, Every explained the story of Dr. Evermor as such:
As Every tells the story of Evermor: "When he was a child, Dr. Evermor witnessed a massive electrical storm with his father, a Presbyterian minister. Asked where lightning came from, his father told Evermor that such awesome power could come only from God. From that day on, Evermor dedicated his life to constructing an antigravity machine and spacecraft that would catapult him from the phoniness of this world to the ultimate truth and power of the next.
"Dr. Evermor believes that if he can ever figure out a way to combine magnetic force and electrical energy, he can propel himself through the heavens on a magnetic lightning force beam," Every said. "That glass ball inside the copper egg is his space ship. There’s also an antigravity machine (made from an early X-ray machine), a teahouse for Queen Victoria and Prince Albert to observe the event, a telescope for bystanders to watch as Evermor flies off to his meeting with God, and a listening machine that will transmit Evermor’s message back to Earth when he arrives at his ultimate destination." (Source: Wired)
Also a big attraction at Dr. Evermor’s Art Park is the Bird Band, which consists of 70 sculptures, some of which can actually play music:
The Bird Band. Image: florador [Flickr]
Every band needs a conductor, so here it is! Image: florador [Flickr]
Image: florador [Flickr]
Image: florador [Flickr]
Does the peacock "toots" when it farts? Image: hartichoked [Flickr]
Let’s take a virtual tour of the other fantastic sculptures by Dr. Evermor:
The Overlord Control at Dr. Evermor’s Art Park. Image: florador [Flickr]
The Juicer Bug, a giant spider. Image: florador [Flickr]
Even the popcorn stand is fantastic! Image: starchy [Flickr]
Don’t even think of stealing these sculptures - they’ve got big guns at the park!
Image: starchy [Flickr]
And no sculpture park is complete without cats! Image: florador [Flickr]
If you ever find yourself on Highway 12 in North Freedom, Baraboo, near Devil’s Lake, Wisconsin, it’s worth to stop and take a look at Dr. Evermor’s Art Park.
Links and sources
» Articles: Dr. Evermor’s website, Wired, Folk Art, Roadside America, LuLu Fry.
» More photos: Flickr photos tagged with Evermor, Forevertron.
» Videos: Dr. Evermor of Wisconsin, The Birds of Evermor, Welcome to Forevertron [YouTube] | Bird Band video - Thanks Cindy Laveck!
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