Theme parks are generally bright and colourful places with lots of interesting structures and forms. You would think, therefore, that they would make great subjects for paintings but I am struggling to find art which features roller coasters and rides. I would like to reflect my interest in rides and amusement parks with art in my home but the choice is surprisingly limited.

Talentless

I have absolutely no artistic talent otherwise I would be tempted to paint something myself. It would be so lovely to have a display of pictures featuring some of my favourite rides but they are just not out there. I have found a few pictures which are worthy of consideration by Magomed Magomedagaev, Linda  Mears and Michael Accorsi who have all painted roller coasters but these pictures are rather generic in nature and I am after pictures of specific rides that I have experienced. I would be interested to see an artist’s interpretation of some of my favourites and to see if they could capture the fun of the rides and the enjoyment of the people riding them.

I am quite attracted to some pieces by UK artist Doug Hyde. He has featured dodgems in his rather charming work. I know these are not exactly roller coasters but Hyde’s work does reflect the joy of the moment and is very appealing.

Photographs

In the absence of a good choice of art I may have turn to photographs. These are never as aesthetically pleasing as a good painting and they lack the character and spirit of a work of art but I do have some great shots that I have taken myself. Interestingly, having tried on numerous occasions to grab some decent pictures of roller coasters, most of the really great results have been almost accidental. The best pictures are often the ones that you snap quickly as you are passing through or looking for something to do whilst you are waiting in a queue line.

A friend of mine has a particularly good eye for what makes a great composition and he has taken some really terrific pictures of rides. I will certainly use some of these around the house and I have some interesting on board pictures too. Most of these things are awful and uninteresting. You know those silly ride pictures you end up buying at the parks after you disembark. In the exhilaration of the moment I have spent fortunes buying pictures that I rarely look at save a few of the more humorous ones when things have gone wrong. My favourite is a souvenir of my ride on Avalanche at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. During the circuit the safety bar slammed into my stomach at the exact moment that the camera went off. My face is a picture of horror and the photo resulted in myself, a friend and the lady at the till dissolving into hysterics.

I think I may have answered my own problem here. I wanted to capture the spirit of the rides and nothing will probably ever do it as well as that picture. I still want some great art but that picture is going to have to go up on the wall.

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Article by Sally Stacey