Big Art, Chapter One

Tucson is blessed with astounding works of folk art sculpture. In this first installment you'll see some of the best known works.

Papa Moai is the omniscient oracle of the nationally-syndicated comic strip Red Meat, which is drawn from the secret files of Tucson's own Max Cannon. You can consult Papa Moai at Magic Carpet Golf, 6125 East Speedway.

Update: Magic Carpet Golf has been bought by a car dealership and will be turned into a parking lot. All the sculptures have to find new homes. Papa Moai is supposed to go to The Hut, a bar and music venue on 4th Avenue.

Volunteers painted the sculptures and cleaned up the miniature golf course just before the closing so nostalgic Tucsonans could enjoy one last day of golf. The plan is that the proceeds from the last round of golf will be used to move some of the sculptures to Valley of the Moon.

A rock dove chills out on the wine bottle in front of Boondocks Lounge on North First Avenue. Many great local bands can be heard at Boondocks, including Carnivaleros, Wayback Machine, and in a new St Patrick's Day tradition, a reunion of the world famous Mollys.

Paul Bunyan or some other gigantic lumberjack threatens motorists at the corner of Stone and Glenn. I used to think that Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda rode their motorcycles past this guy in the beginning of Easy Rider, but on closer examination of the opening scenes, I see they are not cruising this particular intersection, although they do pass this guy's identical twin. I am told that similar behemoths menace other Arizona towns, and he may actually be the Northern Arizona University Lumberjack. If that is the case, it's a mystery why he would risk a venture into U of A Wildcat territory. Sometimes at Christmas, the ax is replaced by a huge red and white stripped candy cane. I like that gesture toward peace on earth.