The Traveling Man does his part to keep Dallas weird. The city has its share of quirky public art, and the trio of shiny, robotlike sculptures are among the most unusual and fun.
The art appears in three installations along North Good Latimer Expressway, which is more of a busy city street than a freeway, with the light rail tracks dividing the north and south lanes.
The backstory for The Traveling Man goes that he was conceived when a splash of gin hit a buried locomotive and the transformer emerged as the ambassador for Deep Ellum‘s future.
At Good Latimer and Elm Street, the gateway to Deep Ellum, Dallas’ art and entertainment district east of downtown, is Awakening, The Traveling Man‘s birth. His head peeks out of the gravel-covered ground surrounded by three plump songbirds.
Across the street, Waiting on a Train comes to rest near the commuter rail station at the corner of the southbound lane of Good Latimer and Pacific Avenue. Here, he sits with his long, spindly legs crossed as he plays a guitar for the three chubby chicks.
Two streets up, on the northbound side of Good Latimer at Miranda Street, Walking Tall stands 40 feet tall in all his gleaming glory. Framed by the city’s skyscrapers in the background, he’s in motion, accompanied, again, by the three chrome birds.
Created by Dallas artists Brad Oldham and Brandon Oldenburg, it is all in good fun. The figures are made of polished metal held together with rivets. Unveiled on August 9, 2009, the art replaced several murals that were destroyed by the construction of the commuter rail system through the historic district.
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This article appears in June 3 • 2022.
