“It’s kind of a Trojan horse.”

Good Magazine

Mary Mihelic is part of the artist duo that bought Donald Trump’s original campaign bus when it went up for sale on Craigslist in 2015 (when Trump was still a long shot for the Presidency.) The duo transformed it into an anti-Trump artwork and crisscrossed the US in it during the 2015/16 campaign season.

  • The 1981 MCI Greyhound bus has over a million miles on it.

  • The bus has a maximum speed of 50 mph – and 7 mph uphill.

  • The bus is disguised at night, so it doesn’t get vandalized.

  • There is a stripper pole inside the bus. (Prior the Trump campaign using the bus, it was used for bachelor parties.)

The artists have been to dozens of Trump rallies and spoken with thousands of Americans about Trump.  The artists witnessed the political landscape change as the country became more and more divisive.

“They have turned the bus into the country’s biggest classiest rolling art installation against the candidate.”

Business Insider

  • Trump Border Wall Section 1

    The artists built the first section of Donald Trump’s “Mexico wall” 20-yards in front of the existing border fence in Jacumba Hot Springs, California. They then billed Mexico for it… see more

  • The Banners

    The bus has been spray painted and keyed. People have thrown eggs, ketchup, basketballs, soda cans, milk crates and much more at it. So the artists decided to hide the Trump name completely at night.… see more

  • The Flags

    Mary Mihelic started embroidering Trump quotes onto American flags on Flag Day. She unveiled the new performance in 2016 at the Betsy Ross House in Philadelphia. The art comments on… see more

“This is the art that matters from the 2016 Presidential election.”

Artnet

The Front of the Bus

The bus has an old flip sign inside that tells people where the bus is headed. Destinations on it include New York City, Washington DC, Philadelphia, Boston, Killington, Atlantic City, Golden Nugget, Playboy and Tropicana.

The artists added three decals to the front: Hasta La Vista Donny, The Scrotal Majority and a black swan.

The Back of the Bus

The back of the bus keeps evolving. Trump’s tagline in Arabic was added after he attacked Muslims. A text artwork that says Save Water. Only Waterboard on Mon/Wed/Fri was added on Earth Day. The Birthed in the USA bumper sticker references Trump’s repeated attacks on Obama’s birthplace.

“It’s this crazy artwork where you watch someone’s emotions shift from one moment to the next as they start to understand it.”

Hyperallergic

  • The Performances

    On the road, the bus is a performance artwork. People swear at it, give it the finger and try to run it off the road. Bus lovers wave, laugh and honk the horn. The artist performances around the bus are a way for everyone to peacefully engage… see more

  • Trump Border Wall Section 2

    Someone bulldozed the first section of Donald Trump's border wall, so the artists went back to Jacumba Hot Springs and built the second section of Trump’s border wall… see more

  • Trump Signs and Leaky Oil Paintings

    The artists make work both on the road and off. Mary Mihelic transforms Trump signs into paintings and draws using the oil that leaks from the bus. It glows when illuminated. See them.

Before

"Donald Trump may want to fire the staffer who let his old Iowa campaign bus fall into the hands of a left artist from Philly."

The Miami Herald