Hi Folks–Peter Aschwanden was best known for illustrating John Muir’s How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive: A Manual of Step-by-Step Procedures for the Compleat Idiot, but he was actually somewhat of a jack-of-all-trades. Not only was he a wonderful book illustrator, but he was also a fine art painter, sculptor and writer. The picture of his painting studio to the right shows some of his paintings, and also the head of the Wizard for a production of The Wizard of Oz and a carved and painted addition to his house with holes and boxes for pigeon nests. So if you’ve come looking for more information on Peter’s all and sundry endeavors, or to see more of Peter's art, you’re in the right place. If you’re just trying to figure out where to buy that VW Idiot Book or Peter's T-shirts and posters, then you’re still in the right place. (For purchasing information on books, T-shirts and posters, or just to see more of Peter’s art, check the links at the right.)

Our interviews with Eve Muir and others are still up on our Facebook Fanpage. Check them out and read all six interviews with Peter’s family and friends and other people from John Muir Publications, complete with photos, historical and otherwise. And take a look at pictures and essays on other books that Peter illustrated as well as lots of other information and comments from friends and fans.

We'll be adding new interviews when we get back and will alternate those with information about additional books that Peter illustrated–car books and more–as well as showing you more of his illustrations and art. As we mentioned above, we'll be away from Friday May 4th through Monday May 21st. We'll still be issuing Paypal invoices and answering questions, but actual shipping will have to wait until we return.

Need even more diversions to cram into your noggin? Why not take a look at Big Blue VW and type "Peter Aschwanden" into the search box for access to lots more info about Peter’s life and work? You might also want to check out Brent Crosby's site where, as he says, "My son and I are getting going on the 1974 Super Beetle project." Lots of pictures of the cars they're putting together in this 2-year experience. "The one old red bug (that is horribly rusty) is slated to be completely disassembled. I have thought of cleaning out the big bay of the barn, putting that bug in the middle and kind of "exploding" it like in the poster." Sounds great to me!

To purchase any of the fine merchandise we offer, or simply to say hi, direct your attention to the icons on this screen. And to purchase additional authorized variations on our T-shirts, type Peter's name into the search engines of Airhead Parts and The Bus Depot. (More info on VW Bus T-shirt variations on our T-shirt Page.)

As always, we can’t wait to hear from you. Thanks for stopping by!

We'll be away from Santa Fe again from May 4th through the 21st. We can still process most orders while we're gone, but won't be able to ship until we get back.