A recreation of the iconic ‘Light’ bus – a Volkswagen Type 2 van made world famous after its appearance at the 1969 Woodstock Art and Music Fair. Dr. Bob Hieronimus painted the original 1963 Standard Microbus in 1968, after an invitation from the van’s owner, who was using it to haul his band to the festival and wanted a ‘magic bus.’ It became a symbol of the Woodstock Art and Music Fair and symbol of the call for peace, love and unity after a snapshot of the van by The Associated Press was widely used in newspapers and magazines across the country. The van even appeared in the liner of the official Woodstock album. (If the Ap covered this event, AutoInformed missed it)

In 2016, Hieronimus and Canadian documentarian John Wesley Chisholm set out to find the van ahead of Woodstock’s 50th anniversary. Originally, the pair hoped to locate and restore the original ‘Light’ bus, but after a six-month search proved futile, they built a replica. Using crowdfunding, the pair was able to acquire an exact model of the original ‘Light’ bus and begin a painstaking restoration process, including a six-week effort by Hieronimus and a team of five artists to recreate the original paintings from the bus.
After learning about the project, Volkswagen of America said it supported the search and restoration process. A team of Volkswagen fans have also helped bring the project to fruition, offering their services and jumping in to assist the duo.