Roller Coaster: Art or Mass Amounts of Metal

I could never chat with people about this (mostly cause they call me a loser when ever I bring it up but....). I think roller coasters are more Art structures than Massive Thrill Machines! Like the way Medusa Rolls through it's cobra roll or Montu's Immelman from the front entrance of Eygept! It's like a painting that you can admire all day!
Anyone agree, or Disagree?
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NITRO EXPLODES!!!!!!!!!!

*** This post was edited by nitro230ft on 8/31/2001. ***

We agree, Angela had an art report to do and chose rollercoasters as her form of art to report on.
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Just a couple of G-force junkies!

yeah i agree, the way its built and the theming that goes into it is definitely a work of art. i hhave always too wanted to paint a coaster cause it is definitley a work of art, but its so hard to choose which one would be good to start off with, especially since i want one that is good in color and has good theming. if anyone has any suggestions just say.

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NEW - 35 Michigan's Adventure Photos at G-Screams
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B and M's have to be some of the most graceful and beutiful things around, I love the look of Chang and Raptor.
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Does CCI know how to make a bad coaster?

Medusa's Seaserpant is very graceful but im hearing it's not as thrilling as the Cobra roll. I have to agree that B&M's coaster are Works of art. They have this way of looking so Thrilling but barrels of fun! That's why they're my favorite coasters!

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NITRO EXPLODES!!!!!!!!!!

I've always thought Mean Streak at CP (although not a mass of metal) is a very beautiful coaster - I love the intricate woodwork in the structure. It's one of those rides I don't mind waiting in line for since I get to check it out a bit.

I think the graceful sweeping lines of Mantis are great, too - maybe I should do something on that for my art class. Hmm....

Had MS as my screen saver for a long time, half for the art, half for the memory of the ride. Co-worker saw my GTR at work the other day (Shivering Timbers on cover) and was saying "man, that is BEAUTIFUL", he doesn't ride, but apparently knows his art....I definitely prefer woodies, out-n-backs or twisters, but WOOD!
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rollergator - intent on improving the "guest experience" - coming soon to a park near you

Son of the Beast's helix like very creative

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NITRO EXPLODES!!!!!!!!!!

Definitely works of architectural art. They are just masterpieces. They are like smaller scales of bridges, with much more extreme rides. :)

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I've always been fascinated by the architecture (and art) of rollercoasters. More so the woodies than the steel, but some steel structures I find fascinating also. I love the Mean Streak and Son of Beast for their looks. On the steel side, I find the second half of S:ROS at SFNE to be a wondrous site, same goes for Talon at Dorney

You bet it's art, though I think function comes before form (engineers tend to be a practical lot). I'm partial to some of the more recent B&M's and their minimal support structures. Look at Nitro... it's hard to believe there are so few supports. Ditto for the lift on Talon.

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Jeff - Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com
"From the global village... in the age of communication!"
Watch the grass grow!

Rollercoasters, to myself is a grand form of art. Not only do they please my eyes to see them, but all my senses as well. They are the ultimate form of expression. On a good woodie the sound of the chain lift is sweet music to my ears. The rush of going down the first drop and seeing what is in store for me. People who do not feel that rollercoasters are art, are stupid and really do not know what art is.
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So many coasters, so little time!

I think wood coasters are excellent source of art. the way it sounds and the way it looks. My personal favorite looking is Mean Streak. It is purely a work of art.

The artistry of coasters is what got me into them in the first place. I was too afraid to ride when I was a kid, but loved them anyway because they looked wonderful to me. What other structures on earth can look so graceful? It especially helps when the rides are nicely landscaped. They blur the lines between machine and nature. They inspire thoughts of skeletons and mountains.
Anyone ever seen any of coaster-inspired Robert Cartmell's paintings?
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Yeeee Haaawwww!

*** This post was edited by janfrederick on 8/31/2001. ***

Rollercoasters are beautiful works of art. Like Jeff said look at Nitro, how it looks like when you first walk into the Que, it looks like a lift hill to the heavens.

Steven- www.sixflagsnews.com

Thank God more people are seeing these things as something more than scream machines. I am an artist and I can't see rides or coasters as anything but art. It's why I build models and do paintings of them. A wooden coaster's structure reveals several things I learned in art school! Look at all that positive/negative space!
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My score on PCW's Scooby Doo Haunted Mansion: 2370!
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Rollercoasters are absolutely art. I know much of the general public doesn't quite feel the same as I (we) do, but I really enjoy just sitting and gazing at a rollercoaster if I can't be riding it. And, if the train is not going through the circuit, I still find them incredible just to observe, as one would observe abstract sculpures. I think a majority of the coaster enthusiasts out there also feel this way, which is definetely one of the reasons that there are so many roller coaster photo sites out there.

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I'd Rather Be Riding Rollercoasters
www.mycoasters.homestead.com/mycoasters.html

Since I'm an artist, I have to agree. Sometimes I just like to admire the way coasters look. Especially B&M's. IMO it's much more nicer to look at a coaster than a Piccaso painting.

ARROW GUY said:
A wooden coaster's structure reveals several things I learned in art school! Look at all that positive/negative space!

I know! I have to have 3 drawlings in my sketch book by the end of the week, and they are all coasters!

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Ricochet: Bouncing to you in 2002, Only at King's Dominion!

I agree that coasters ARE art. I get goosebumps just looking at the delicate nature of the wood....how the steel rises to the sky... They really are amazing to look at, let alone ride. I golf for the same reason. I love the look of a beautiful green course. The trees, the smell. When you go to the parks, you get the same thing, but the smells are different. Popcorn, ice cream, scones, onion burgers with mustard. :) Now if we could get a coaster made out of glass...
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