Artist Bob “Daddy-O” Wade used petroleum pipelines to create a Texas landmark.
With more than 2.5 million miles of oil and natural gas pipelines crisscrossing the United States, an offbeat Texas sculptor in 1993 repurposed about 70 feet to create a work of art.
Many Texas travelers at some point have witnessed the monumental sculptures of Bob “Daddy-O” Wade, known for “keeping it weird” since he made the scene in Austin in 1961. Decades of giant artworks by “Daddy-O” have reflected his unusual Texas sense of scale.
Bob Wade’s 1993 saxophone includes a 48-inch-wide pipeline, hubcaps, and an upside-down Volkswagen. Photo courtesy bobwade.com.
In February 1993 on Houston’s west side, Wade (1943-2019) completed his iconic 70-foot blue saxophone (including its steel pipe support) in front of a once popular club. Wade and his crew transformed two 48-inch-wide sections of steel pipeline into a free-standing sculpture for the opening of Billy Blues Bar & Grill.
The Fabulous Thunderbirds played at the February 20, 1993, gala as the crowd admired Wade’s pipeline artwork, which was supported by a 25-foot-deep pylon. Onlookers from the petroleum industry may have noticed the pipe had the same four-foot width as the 800-mile Alaskan pipeline.
The bell of Wade’s towering saxophone incorporated most of an upside-down Volkswagen. The keys, reed, octave key, and other parts were morphed from chrome hubcaps, beer kegs, surfboard, a canoe and other incongruous pieces to make what soon became known around Houston as the “Smokesax.”
Artwork or Bar Sign?
According to Texas A&M University Press, following the gala at Billy Blues Bar & Grill, a debate began about whether “Daddy-O” Wade’s sculpture was a work of art — or just a big advertisement for the restaurant.
Although deemed by the Houston City Council to be a work of art and thus not subject to signage ordinances, it took First Amendment arguments to reach that decision. The “Smokesax” had been accused of violating Houston’s sign ordinance prohibiting advertising billboards taller than 40 feet.
“While embraced by the local art community, the Sax was targeted by the Houston Sign Administration as being in violation of the Houston Sign Code,” explained Richard Rothfelder in a 2018 column for a signage trade magazine.
“Daddy-O” Wade created what many say is the world’s largest (non-playable) saxophone. Bobwade.com photo.
Confronted with Houston’s art community support of the saxophone, “the court ruled unanimously in Billy Blues’ favor,” Rothfelder noted in Billboard Insider. “In fact, public and media support of the Smoke Sax was so overwhelming that the City was basically looking for a graceful way to save face and withdrew its opposition by the time of the hearing.”
Wade’s creative use of 48-inch-wide steel pipe was also noted by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, which described artist Wade as a “pioneer of Texas Funk and connoisseur of Southwestern kitsch.” Musician Willie Nelson once opined, “Now that I understand art, I realize what a genius Daddy-O Wade really is.”
Other popular artwork by Wade includes “Iggy,” a giant iguana perched on the animal hospital at the Ft. Worth Zoo. There are plans for the 40-foot-long sculpture to come down for refurbishment in 2025.
Center for Visionary Art
When Billy Blues Bar & Grill moved from Richmond Avenue to a new site in 2001, the future was uncertain for Houston’s pipeline pop art, declared by some as the largest (non-playable) saxophone in the world, according to The Bassic Sax Blog. After the club moved, the building stood empty for years and the sax was neglected (as well as vandalized).
An artist’s conception of the proposed Kensinger Plaza home for Bob Wade’s “Smokesax” along Houston’s Bayou Greenways trail system. Photo courtesy Orange Show Center for Visionary Art.
Originally commissioned by businessman Phil Kensinger for his Billy Blues Bar, Wade’s ‘Smokesax’ served as a Houston landmark for over 20 years on Richmond Avenue. In 2012, the Kensinger family donated “Smokesax” to the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art via the Orange Show Foundation.
Fundraising and design planning continued in 2025 for construction of a plaza along the Houston trail system at Brays Bayou near the University of Houston. “Kensinger Plaza will be the new permanent home for Bob Wade’s “Smokesax,” and will also include a stage for performances curated by the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art, benches, and other amenities,” noted the Orange Show Center.
Meanwhile, Bob “Daddy-O” Wade’s blue, 70-foot pipeline sculpture already has earned its place as a milestone of petroleum in art.
Oil and Gas Pipelines
Pipeline large and small (along with pumping stations) have been part of the petroleum industry since the earliest U.S. wells. In Venango County, Pennsylvania, the an iron pipeline constructed in February 1863 attempted to link oil wells to the Humboldt Refinery at Oil City about 2.5 miles away.
Inventor J.L. Hutchings of New Jersey used his newly patented rotary pumps to move oil through the two-inch diameter piping. The rotary pumps were an important innovation, but Hutchings’ cast-iron pipe proved impractical after its soldered joints leaked. In 1865, another inventor completed the world’s first successful oil pipeline.
Samuel Van Syckel, an oil trader who wanted to break the petroleum region’s teamsters monopoly, constructed a two-inch-wide, wrought iron pipeline that used threaded joints. The pipeline transported 2,000 barrels of oil a day to a railroad depot more than five miles away.
Another pipeline technology milestone came during World War II. The industry-government partnership “Big Inch” pipelines with diameters of 24 inches and 20 inches connected prolific Texas oilfields with Chicago and East Coast refineries.
More than 2.6 million miles of pipelines every year deliver trillions of cubic feet of natural gas (red) and hundreds of billions of tons of liquid petroleum products (blue). Map courtesy U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Since starting operations in June 1977, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System has delivered more than 17.5 billion barrels of oil from North Slope and Prudhoe Bay oilfields (as of 2018). The pipeline’s maximum throughput was more than 2 million barrels of oil a day in 1988.
Giant storage tanks at Cushing, Oklahoma, in the late 2010s reached a capacity of 85 million barrels of oil, enhancing the town’s self-proclaimed status as “Pipeline Crossroads of the World.” About 2.6 million miles of petroleum pipelines operated daily as part of U.S. energy infrastructure by 2018.
Since the 1990s, companies have used “in-line” tools to inspect for corrosion and other defects — while the pipelines remain in use. According to the American Petroleum Institute, an electronic “smart pig,” introduced in 1965, became the generic name for sophisticated in-line inspection tools targeting defects with greater accuracy.
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Recommended Reading: Daddy-O’s Book of Big-Ass Art (2020); Oil: From Prospect to Pipeline
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The American Oil & Gas Historical Society (AOGHS) preserves U.S. petroleum history. Please become an AOGHS annual supporter and help maintain this energy education website and expand historical research. For more information, contact bawells@aoghs.org. Copyright © 2025 Bruce A. Wells. All rights reserved.
Citation Information – Article Title: “’Smokesax’ Art has Pipeline Heart.” Authors: B.A. Wells and K.L. Wells. Website Name: American Oil & Gas Historical Society. URL: https://aoghs.org/petroleum-art/smokesax-art-has-pipeline-heart. Last Updated: February 10, 2025. Original Published Date: February 18, 2019.
