WILSON, N.C. – The eccentric vision of a self-taught North Carolina artist famed for his whimsical, wind-powered whirligigs is getting an overhaul that's as much about engineering as it is about art.

LUCAMA, N.C. (AP) — When a breeze brushes through the field just below Vollis Simpson’s machine shop, you can hear the sounds of metal clanging against metal and of Ferris wheel-like contraptions ...

RALEIGH, N.C. Where others saw trash, Vollis Simpson saw whimsical, wind-powered whirligigs, creations with hundreds of moving parts that turned and twirled. The whirligigs were made from recycled ...

Dear Helaine and Joe: I have finally summoned the courage to write and ask about this whirligig discovered in the barn of the old house my husband and I bought. I have no idea how old it is, or ...

Whirligigs were invented centuries ago. They are both toys and tools, indicators of wind direction and the weather. Sources disagree on where the first were made; it was probably in China about 400 ...

WILSON, N.C.WILSON, N.C. — The eccentric vision of a self-taught North Carolina artist famed for his whimsical, wind-powered whirligigs is getting an overhaul that’s as much about engineering as it is ...

When a breeze brushes through the field just below Vollis Simpson's machine shop, you can hear the sounds of metal clanging against metal and of Ferris wheel-like contraptions turning. But the ...