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In 1994, a cartoon called Street Sharks sought to detail the harrowed lives of four disfigured, mutant shark-men doomed to roam a post-apocalyptic city reminding humanity of the perils of playing God. Two decades later, Jason Wells and Richard Cawley made Street Sharks' warning a reality, in vehicle form. Shark Car, an aluminum-and-steel, shark-shaped, waterproofed canopy atop a 1993 Ford F-250, is a monstrous hybrid of pickup truck and predatory fish. Shark Car was built by Cawley and partner Gustav (together they run co-op Manifestation PDX) in a fit of inspiration following Burning Man. "Once you go to Burning Man everything is inspired by Burning Man," Cawley says. But two years ago, it ended up serving a more practical purpose at a production staged at the Alberta Rose. "For our show J.A.W.Z. the Musical in 3-D, it's how we hauled set pieces," Wells says. "J.A.W.Z.-mobile," "ShART-mobile"—it has many names, but none more apt than Spielberg's original: "Sometimes we call it Bruce."
Willamette Week