Retro Rocket

Push the buttons and crank the knobs and Jimmy Descant’s Deluxe Rocketships will beep, blink, and rattle. The New Orleans artist makes his one-of-a-kind sculptures out of the detritus found at flea markets and thrift stores, such as flashlights and thermoses. "I always loved ’50s industrial design," says Descant, who found his inspiration in an […]

Push the buttons and crank the knobs and Jimmy Descant's Deluxe Rocketships will beep, blink, and rattle. The New Orleans artist makes his one-of-a-kind sculptures out of the detritus found at flea markets and thrift stores, such as flashlights and thermoses. "I always loved '50s industrial design," says Descant, who found his inspiration in an old Electroluxe vacuum cleaner.

Now he sells the sculptures for US$200 to $2,000 a pop. His latest buyer: Simpsons creator Matt Groening, who bought a vacuum-cleaner rocket decked with a '57 Chevy spinning hood ornament to display in his LA studio.

ELECTRIC WORD

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