California Coastal Commission and California Tahoe Conservancy Commission Art Car to Promote Sales of Environmental License

    SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 21 "My vision for the Lake Tahoe art
car is one that combines art with science, and is specific and unique to the
animals and landmarks of the Tahoe area," says San Francisco art car artist
JeanAnnette Saulsbury. Although undecorated automobiles typically dominate the
streets of California throughout the year, for the moment, an art car rules.
The California Coastal Commission and the California Tahoe Conservancy have
joined forces with Black Rocket, the award-winning San Francisco advertising
agency, in commissioning Saulsbury to transform a used 1979 Datsun 210 into a
mobile work of art as part of a new advertising campaign for ECOPLATES.com.
    The joint ad campaign for the Lake Tahoe and Whale Tail plates features
art cars to promote the agencies' environmental license plates and
ECOPLATES.com. These are official California license plates whose sales
support two of California's treasures, the California Coast and Lake Tahoe.
    Artist Saulsbury is using local flora and fauna to create the Lake Tahoe
art car, including a scaled-down fiberglass Mt. Tallac with its trademark
snowy cross, and many of the birds, animals and plants native to the Tahoe
region. She is working in an open air "studio" in Black Rocket's parking lot
at Pier 33 South in San Francisco, and expects to complete the Datsun's
transformation by early February. Once transformed, the art car will be
brought to Lake Tahoe for an official launch and press tour and will be
featured in the Tahoe License Plate ad. Since 1985, revenues from the sale of
Lake Tahoe ecoplates have allowed the Tahoe Conservancy to carry out many
important public access, soil erosion control, wildlife habitat enhancement
and water quality projects.
    The Whale Tail License Plate ad will feature images of "The Whale Car," an
art car designed and created by artist Christian Zajac of Santa Cruz, to
support sales of the California Coastal Commission's Whale Tail Plate. This
plate was established in 1996 and has provided close to 1.5 million dollars in
grant funding for coastal protection projects, marine education, habitat
restoration and access projects. In addition to funding its own Adopt-A-Beach
Program and Coastal Cleanup Day, the Commission distributes funding from the
Whale Tail Plate to nonprofit organizations, local government and schools.
    The California Tahoe Conservancy is an independent agency within the
California State Resources Agency, established to preserve the water quality,
scenic beauty and recreational opportunities of the region. The California
Coastal Commission is a state government agency whose mission is to protect
and enhance resources of the California coast and ocean for current and future
generations.