SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 462
WHEREAS, Austin artist Bob "Daddy-O" Wade has earned
international distinction for himself and for his state as an
extraordinary exporter of Texas culture and creator of giant
public sculptures; and
WHEREAS, Bob Wade was born in Austin, Texas; he received a
bachelor of fine arts degree from The University of Texas at
Austin and a master of arts degree from the University of
California, Berkeley; and
WHEREAS, Known as a "pioneer of Texas Funk and connoisseur
of Southwestern kitsch," Mr. Wade was a shaper of the 1970s Texas
"cosmic" counterculture and has been a longtime ambassador for
Texas art; his oversized Texas-themed sculptural work includes a
giant six-shooter in Del Rio, which was made using a 55-gallon
drum for the cylinder, a stove pipe for the barrel, and stucco for
the pearl handle; and
WHEREAS, Bob Wade is the recipient of three National
Endowment for the Arts grants, and his work has been included in
biennial exhibitions in Paris, France, in New Orleans, and at the
Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City; his work can be
found at the Menil Collection in Houston and in the collections
of the Austin Museum of Art, Chase Manhattan Bank, and AT&T; he
has produced three books, and his work was included in Oil Patch
Dreams: Images of the Petroleum Industry in American Art at the
Art Museum of Southeast Texas; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Wade's unique larger-than-life art includes
his 2006 Kinky Mobile, a small teardrop trailer with a large
cowboy hat on top and a three-foot cigar sticking out the front,
the production of which coincided with Kinky Friedman's run for
Texas governor, and his iconic iguana, which stood on the roof of
the Lone Star Café in New York City for a decade and can now be
seen atop a building at the Fort Worth Zoo; his work can also be
found at The Grove in Fort Worth, as part of the Waterside
development's public art program; installed in 2016, this
outdoor sculpture celebrates the area's history and is made from
repurposed amusement-park rides and playground equipment; a book
chronicling the oversized artworks he has created over a span of
50 years will be published by Texas A&M University Press in March
2020; and
WHEREAS, Turning 40 years old this year is the largest
cowboy boot sculpture in the world, a Bob Wade creation that was
recognized by the Guinness book of world records; the enormous
pair of ostrich boots is seen daily by thousands of drivers going
past the North Star Mall on Loop 410 in San Antonio; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 86th
Legislature, hereby congratulate Bob "Daddy-O" Wade on his
mastery of oversized Texas symbols and on the 40th anniversary of
his World's Largest Cowboy Boots; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for
Daddy-O as an expression of esteem from the Texas Senate.
Watson
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President of the Senate
I hereby certify that the
above Resolution was adopted by
the Senate on March 21, 2019.
________________________________
Secretary of the Senate
________________________________
Member, Texas Senate