Le May Car Museum

The volunteers of the Museum of Flight and the Le May Car Museum have had an exchange.  I went with M of F volunteers today to visit the Car Museum in Tacoma.

I arrived a little early and had time to sketch my view of the Tacoma Dome from the parking lot.

First, we were given a one hour tour.  After that, I took a break in the cafe and sketched this “8th oldest” VW bug from above. This is the 1943 KdF VW.  KdF is short for Kraft durch Freude (“Strength through Joy”).

I spent a couple hours wandering through each gallery and made a study of some of the old hood ornaments. Can you imagine that Duesenberg one in the middle on a car today!  Some one could be impaled on it!  Think of the law suits.  I forgot to ask a docent whether the line in the middle of the circle on the Ford Model A in the bottom right was for sighting one’s way along the road.

I shot 129 photos and have culled them only down to 96.  I’ve photographed the signs so each car image is proceeded by an identifier.  They are all here.

After lunch and more exploring the museum, I left to go see Chandler O’Leary’s “You’ll Like Tacoma” art show ( and here )  It was just a few blocks away so it was a perfect time to see it.   Her blog, Drawn the Road Again, is well worth following.  The show was very good.  It was a bit difficult to see as it is hung in a dentist office so a couple I was unable to view closely due to patient care.