''The Traveling Man'' is a series of three metal sculptures depicting robots accompanied by birds in the Deep Ellum neighborhood of

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

. Made of brushed and polished sheets of

stainless steel Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...

held together with

rivet A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed, a rivet consists of a smooth cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite to the head is called the ''tail''. On installation, the rivet is placed in a punched ...

s, the sculptures were a collaboration between sculptor Brad Oldham and

Brandon Oldenburg Brandon Oldenburg is an American filmmaker and illustrator. Career He was an early employee of Reel FX Creative Studios (1995), doing a combination of design and special effects for television and film. Serving as Senior Creative director for 1 ...

Reel FX Creative Studios Reel FX Animation (or simply Reel FX) - formerly known as Reel FX Creative Studios (also known as Reel FX Animation Studios) is an American computer animation and visual effects studio based in Dallas, Texas; Hollywood, California. The studio dev ...

. They are intended to be evocative of both the history of rail transportation in Deep Ellum and its more recent development as an artistic community. The sculptures were commissioned by

Dallas Area Rapid Transit Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is a transit agency serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex of Texas. It operates buses, light rail, commuter rail, and high-occupancy vehicle lanes in Dallas and twelve of its suburbs. In , the system had a ...

(DART) and unveiled in August 2009, replacing a series of murals that were destroyed in 2007 for the construction of

DART Light Rail DART Light Rail is the light rail system serving the metropolitan area of Dallas, Texas and is owned and operated by Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART). The DART Light Rail system opened June 14, 1996 and serves 65 stations and four lines, cover ...

in Deep Ellum. The three individual sculptures that comprise ''The Traveling Man'' progress chronologically. ''Awakening'' is a sculpture that depicts only part of ''The Traveling Man'''s head as it emerges from a gravel pit. ''Waiting on a Train'' features the robot playing a guitar. ''Walking Tall'' is in height and posed mid-stride. All three of the sculptures are surrounded by metal birds.

Design

''The Traveling Man'' is a series of three metal sculptures depicting robots accompanied by birds in the Deep Ellum neighborhood of

. They were created by a collaboration between Brad Oldham and

. Oldenburg and his

, an animation and production studio in Deep Ellum, developed the idea of a giant metal robot walking through the neighborhood. Oldham, a sculptor from Dallas, formed the physical sculptures. All three sculptures are made of brushed and polished sheets of

that are held together with approximately 10,000 stainless steel

s. ''The Traveling Man'''s design is intended to require minimal maintenance and to invite the public to interact with the sculptures. ''The Traveling Man'' is intended to be evocative of both the history of rail transportation in Deep Ellum and its more recent development as an artistic community. Writing in the '' Dallas Observer'', Kimber Westphall counted them among the neighborhood's "most iconic and photographed fixtures". Oldenburg called ''The Traveling Man'' a "figure that represents the spirit of the artists".

Construction

''The Traveling Man'' sculptures were commissioned by

(DART) in July 2007. The budget for the project was set at $1.4 million. In August 2009, the finished sculptures were unveiled and gifted to the City of Dallas. They replaced a series of murals that were destroyed in 2007 for the construction of

in Deep Ellum. The sculptures were installed along Good-Latimer Expressway.

Individual sculptures

The three individual sculptures that comprise ''The Traveling Man'' tell a chronological story that begins with ''Awakening'', a sculpture that depicts only part of ''The Traveling Man'''s head as it emerges from a gravel pit as three metal birds look on. ''Awakening'' illustrates the fictional origin story of ''The Traveling Man'', which according to Oldham and Oldenburg is that it was a

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

buried beneath an elm tree that sprang to life when a

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

musician spilled

gin Gin () is a distilled alcoholic drink that derives its flavour from juniper berries (''Juniperus communis''). Gin originated as a medicinal liquor made by monks and alchemists across Europe, particularly in southern Italy, Flanders and the Ne ...

on the tree's roots. Oldham further elaborated that the birds "represent the artistic souls who have been and will be in Deep Ellum". The second of the sculptures, ''Waiting on a Train'', features the robot playing a guitar. This sculpture is sitting and leaning against a piece of concrete debris that was recovered from an old railroad tunnel in Deep Ellum. Like the others, it is surrounded by metal birds. The third of the three sculptures, ''Walking Tall'', is in height, weighs , and is located next to DART Light Rail's Deep Ellum station. This sculpture is posed mid-stride and features a metal bird on its arm and more around its feet.

References

External links

*
The Traveling Man
' at '' Atlas Obscura'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Traveling Man, The 2009 establishments in Texas 2009 sculptures Dallas Area Rapid Transit Public art in Dallas Stainless steel sculptures in the United States